John F. Walsh

John F. Walsh (born May 28, 1961) is an American attorney who served as the United States Attorney for the District of Colorado from 2010 to 2016.[2] Walsh was nominated by President Barack Obama on April 14, 2010 and sworn in on in on August 16, 2010.[3] When he stepped down in 2016, Walsh was the longest-serving U.S. attorney in Colorado history.[4]

John F. Walsh
United States Attorney for the District of Colorado
In office
August 16, 2010 – August 10, 2016
PresidentBarack Obama
Preceded byDavid Gaouette (acting)
Succeeded byRobert Troyer
Personal details
Born (1961-05-28) May 28, 1961[1]
New York City, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
EducationWilliams College (BA)
Stanford University (JD)

Education

Walsh attended Cherry Creek High School, a public high school in the Cherry Creek School District.[5] He attended Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute for one year before transferring to Williams College, where he graduated magna cum laude and Phi Beta Kappa with a B.A. degree in political science.[6]

Walsh graduated with a JD from Stanford Law School in 1986. Walsh graduated Order of the Coif and with honors. He was the senior notes editor of the Stanford Law Review and president of the Stanford Public Interest Law Foundation.[6]

Early career

In the late 1980s and early 1990s, Walsh served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles,[5] where he headed the office’s major frauds section.[7] Walsh was involved in high-profile prosecutions of securities fraud,[8] investment schemes that targeted seniors,[9] and insurance fraud.[10] He was a member of the team that prosecuted Charles Keating for his role in the savings and loan crisis.[11]

Walsh led the federal investigation that resulted in the indictment and resignation of Governor Fife Symington of Arizona.[12]

Walsh helped prosecute Norwalk Assemblyman Bruce E. Young,[13] who was sentenced to eighteen months in prison in what the Los Angeles Times called “one of the few successful political corruption prosecutions ever mounted against a California legislator.”[14]

In 2004, Walsh ran for Denver District Attorney. The Denver Post endorsed Walsh, arguing that his “excellent combination of outlook, experience and skills” made him the best choice for the job.[11]

United States Attorney

Appointment

On April 14, 2010, Walsh was nominated by President Barack Obama to serve as United States Attorney for the District of Colorado. Walsh was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on August 5, 2010, and was sworn in on August 16, 2010.[3] Attorney General Eric Holder attended Walsh’s formal investiture on January 12, 2011 in Denver.[15]

Record

Walsh pursued legal action against Citibank for misconduct that contributed to the Great Recession. His office won $4 billion dollars in fines and $2.5 billion in consumer relief.[16] The $7 billion resolution was the largest settlement in the history of the Colorado U.S. Attorney’s office.[17]

Walsh co-chaired the Department of Justice’s Residential Mortgage-Backed Securities Working Group, a team of 55 attorneys, agents and analysts tasked with seeking criminal charges against individuals who committed mortgage fraud and contributed to the financial crisis.[18]

Walsh prosecuted the pharmaceutical company GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for misconduct in the marketing of its products.[19] GSK pled guilty and paid a $3 billion penalty, the largest health care fraud fine in history.[20]

Resignation

Walsh stepped down as U.S. Attorney on July 29, 2016. Upon his resignation, the Department of Justice praised Walsh for concluding “the largest federal penalty cases in Colorado’s history, collecting literally billions of dollars on behalf of American taxpayers and the United States Treasury.”[17]

Private practice

On January 9, 2017, Walsh joined the law firm WilmerHale as a partner in their Denver Office.[6]

In early 2019, the Rocky Mountain Immigrant Advocacy Network announced that Walsh and a team of WilmerHale attorneys will be honored with the Network's 2019 Pro Bono Service Award.[21] Walsh’s team represented immigrant parents and relatives detained and separated from their children under the Trump administration's family separation policy.[6]

Return to politics

On March 18, 2019, Walsh stepped down from his job at WilmerHale to run for the United States Senate seat currently held by Republican Cory Gardner. Walsh said he would make a decision on his Senate run by the end of April 2020.[7]

Personal life

Walsh lives in Denver with his wife, Lisa.[5]

Walsh serves on the board of directors of Invest in Kids, a Colorado nonprofit focused on early childhood education and health.[22] He has previously served on the boards of directors of the Colorado Lawyers Committee, the Faculty of Federal Advocates, the Leadership Denver Alumni Association, and the United States-Mexico Law Institute.[6]

References
  2. "Meet the U.S. Attorney". Justice.gov. Archived from the original on January 15, 2016. Retrieved June 14, 2017.CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  3. Office (USAO), U. S. Attorney's. "U.S. Attorney's Office - U.S. Department of Justice". www.justice.gov. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  4. Mitchell, Kirk (July 29, 2016). "U.S. Attorney John Walsh to step down, return to private practice". Denverpost.com. Retrieved June 14, 2017.
  5. Post, Felisa Cardona | The Denver (October 8, 2010). "New U.S. attorney John Walsh to target economic crimes, terrorism". The Denver Post. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  6. "Former US Attorney John Walsh Joins WilmerHale". www.wilmerhale.com. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  7. Politics, Ernest Luning, Colorado. "Ex-U.S. Attorney Walsh steps down from law firm to mull run against Gardner". Colorado Politics. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  8. "Magna Promoter Sought : Indictment: Jacob Rubenstein is one of four men charged with manipulating stock of defunct Thousand Oaks company". Los Angeles Times. April 3, 1990. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  9. "Man Pleads Guilty to Defrauding 3 of Savings : Crime: A former insurance broker stole more than $600,000 from three elderly people. He faces up to 30 years in prison". Los Angeles Times. July 10, 1990. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  10. "Game Show Winner Gets 5 Years for Insurance Scam". Los Angeles Times. May 3, 1988. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  11. "John Walsh for District Attorney" (PDF). The Denver Post. July 25, 2004. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  12. Dougherty, John (September 29, 1993). "FEDS PROBE SYMINGTON FIRMA GRAND JURY INVESTIGATES THE GOVERNOR'S DEVELOPMENT COMPANY AND ITS NUMEROUS FAILED REAL ESTATE DEALS". Phoenix New Times. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  13. "Attorneys for Young Told Not to Make Trial a Circus". Los Angeles Times. January 14, 1987. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  14. "Young Gets 18-Month Prison Term : Former Assemblyman Also Fined $5,000; Displays Contrition". Los Angeles Times. March 31, 1987. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  15. Post, Felisa Cardona | The Denver (January 13, 2011). "AG Holder flies in for U.S. Attorney Walsh's oath". The Denver Post. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  16. Adams, Roger. "Bringing CitiBank to Justice". www.aspenpublicradio.org. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  17. "Colorado United States Attorney John Walsh to Step Down Following Six Years of Service". www.justice.gov. July 29, 2016. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  18. "New initiative will coordinate probes of mortgage meltdown". Los Angeles Times. January 27, 2012. ISSN 0458-3035. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  19. Post, Kevin C. Keller | The Denver (July 2, 2012). "Colorado to receive $4.5 million in settlement with GlaxoSmithKline". The Denver Post. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  20. Carter, Monica. "GlaxoSmithKline pays $3 billion in healthcare fraud settlement". The DePaulia. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  21. "Immigrant Liberty Awards". RMIAN. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
  22. "Invest In Kids | Board". www.iik.org. Retrieved April 10, 2019.
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