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Department of Justice
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE AG
ATTORNEY GENERAL ASHCROFT NAMES KENNETH L. WAINSTEIN AS INTERIM U.S. ATTORNEYWASHINGTON, D.C. -- Attorney General John Ashcroft today named Kenneth L. Wainstein as interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia. Wainstein, currently Chief of Staff to FBI Director Robert Mueller, will replace U.S. Attorney Roscoe Howard, Jr., who resigned today. “Ken has served our nation with distinction for years, fighting gang violence and working to keep hardened criminals off the street,” said Attorney General John Ashcroft. “As interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia, he will bring to the job a high degree of professionalism, legal expertise, and practical experience.” “Ken’s experience in two U.S. Attorneys’ Offices
prosecuting high-impact cases, coupled with his work on the FBI’s
transformation during a critical time, makes him uniquely suited to
serve as interim U.S. Attorney,” said FBI Director Robert Mueller. Prior to his promotion to Chief of Staff in March 2003, Wainstein served as the General Counsel of the FBI. From August 2001 to July 2002, he served as Director of the Justice Department’s Executive Office for U.S. Attorneys, where he provided oversight and support to the 94 offices of the United States Attorneys and acted as a liaison between the U.S. Attorneys, the Attorney General, the Deputy Attorney General, and the various components of the Department of Justice. Wainstein was the interim U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia between April and August of 2001. Wainstein is a 1984 graduate of the University of Virginia, and a 1988 graduate of the Boalt Hall School of Law at the University of California at Berkeley. He clerked for Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia before beginning his Justice Department career as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of New York two months later. While in the Southern District, he handled a variety of prosecutions, including fraud, narcotics, and public corruption cases. In 1992, Wainstein transferred to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the District of Columbia, where he served for nine years and handled a number of high profile cases, including the Starbucks murder case and a groundbreaking case that used the RICO statute against a robbery ring. As a line prosecutor and Deputy Chief of the Homicide Section between 1994 and 1999, he specialized in the prosecution of federal racketeering cases against violent street gangs. He later served as Deputy Chief of the Superior Court Division and Principal Assistant U.S. Attorney, and was awarded the Director’s Award for Superior Performance in 1997 and 2000. Kenneth L. Wainstein, Chief of StaffKen Wainstein graduated from the University of Virginia in 1984 with a Bachelor of Arts degree in Government and International Relations. He obtained his law degree from the University of California, Berkeley, Boalt Hall School of Law in 1988. Mr.Wainstein began his professional career clerking for Judge Thomas Penfield Jackson in the United States District Court, District of Columbia. In October 1989 he started as an Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York, where he served in the General Crimes and Narcotics Sections. Mr. Wainstein transferred to the United States Attorney's Office, District of Columbia, in 1992. Between 1994 and 1999, he served as a line prosecutor and Deputy Chief in the Homicide Section, specializing in the prosecution of federal racketeering cases. He served as the Deputy Chief of the Superior Court Division between July 1999 and October 2000, and as Principal Assistant United States Attorney between October 2000 and April 200l. He then served as the Interim United States Attorney from April 2001 until August 2001, when he was appointed to serve as the Director of the Executive Office for United States Attorneys (EOUSA). As Director of EOUSA, Mr. Wainstein provided oversight and support to the 94 Offices of the United States Attorneys, composed of 93 Presidentially-appointed United States Attorneys, approximately 5,000 Assistant United States Attorneys, and approximately 5,000 support staff employees. He was also liaison between the United States Attorneys and the Attorney General, Deputy Attorney General, and the Department's other components. On July 16, 2002, Mr. Wainstein was appointed to serve as the FBI's General Counsel, and on March 31, 2003, he assumed the position of Chief of Staff to Director Mueller. Prior to graduating law school, Mr. Wainstein worked on Capitol Hill in the office of Congressman Carl D. Perkins; as a paralegal for the Securities Section of Cleary, Gottlieb, Steen & Hamilton (Washington DC); and as a summer associate for Hunton & Williams (Washington DC) and Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher (DC and NY). |
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