Dear Mr. Chairman and Senator Durbin,
I am writing on behalf of the members of the Fraternal Order of Police to express our strong support for the nomination of Mr. Jay Clayton to serve as U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York and to ask the Committee on the Judiciary to consider and favorably report his nomination to the Senate.
Mr. Clayton, a former Chairman of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, has decades of interaction with law enforcement and currently serves as the interim U.S. Attorney. In our conversations with him, he made clear he was very much aware of the problem of “rogue” prosecutors and how decisions on how to charge individuals who target police for violence were especially concerning. He told us he would welcome laws like the “Protect and Serve Act,” which would allow for Federal prosecutions in certain specific circumstances. He also said he would continue to work with State and local law enforcement using a multijurisdictional task force model to combat human trafficking and violent crime. We believe he will do his utmost to promote public safety and collaborate with those in the field.
Mr. Clayton also enjoys the support of the members of the New York State FOP Lodge, who have welcomed his leadership as interim U.S. Attorney. The Southern District of New York is one of the busiest and most consequential in the country and is at the forefront of many important areas of criminal law enforcement, including terrorism, white collar and cybercrime, mortgage fraud, public corruption, gang violence, organized crime, international narcotics trafficking and human trafficking. It is vitally important that this U.S. Attorney’s Office has a leader that has been confirmed by the United States Senate and we are certain that Jay Clayton is the right man for the job.
On behalf of the more than 377,000 members of the Fraternal Order of Police, we support the nomination of Mr. Clayton to serve as United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and strongly urge the Committee act as swiftly as possible on this nomination. If I can be of any further assistance or provide additional information or support for Mr. Clayton’s nomination, please do not hesitate to contact me or Executive Director Jim Pasco in our Washington, D.C. office.
Sincerely,
Patrick Yoes
National President