James B. Letten | |
|---|---|
 | |
| United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana | |
| In office April 30, 2001 – December 11, 2012 | |
| President | George W. Bush Barack Obama |
| Preceded by | Eddie J. Jordan Jr. |
| Succeeded by | Kenneth Polite |
| Personal details | |
| Born | (1953-09-12)September 12, 1953 (age 72) New Orleans, Louisiana, U.S. |
| Education | University of New Orleans (BA) Tulane University (JD) |
James B. Letten (born September 12, 1953) is an American attorney. A careerprosecutor, Letten served asU.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Louisiana for more than eleven years.[1] By the time Letten resigned as U.S. Attorney in December 2012, he was the longest-serving U.S. Attorney in the country.
After stepping down, Letten joinedTulane University Law School as an assistant dean. Letten later becameof counsel with the firm of Butler Snow, while retaining his post at Tulane.
Letten was born atSouthern Baptist Hospital in New Orleans on September 12, 1953.[2] He is the only son of Alden and Dorothy "Dot" Letten; his father was a steel fabricator.[2]
Letten graduated fromDe La Salle High School in 1971.[2] He received hisB.A. from theUniversity of New Orleans in 1976 and hisJuris Doctor from theTulane University Law School in 1979.[2][3]
Letten worked forOrleans ParishDistrict AttorneyHarry Connick Sr. for four years.[2] In 1982, Letten became a federal prosecutor, beginning on anorganized crime strike force.[2] He was part of the team that prosecuted several leaders of theNew Orleans mafia and figures from theNew York crime families.[2]
From 1994 to 2001, Letten was first assistant U.S. attorney under then-U.S. AttorneyEddie Jordan Jr. (who later became Orleans Parish district attorney).[2] In that position Letten was best known as the lead prosecutor in theracketeering trial of formerLouisiana GovernorEdwin Edwards.[2][4] Letten also prosecuted formerstate representativeDavid Duke.[5]
Letten is aRepublican, having been appointed to the U.S. Attorney's position byPresidentGeorge W. Bush. Nonetheless, when Republicans lost the Presidency toDemocratBarack Obama in 2008, many Democrats, includingU.S. SenatorMary Landrieu, took the unusual step of urging the new President to reappoint Letten.[6]
As U.S. Attorney, Letten became known for his "successful prosecutions of public officials," ranging from corrupt elected officials to corrupt judges, police officers, and school officials.[7] TheNew York Times described him as "a popular crusader against thecrooked traditions of Louisiana public servants."[4]
TheTimes-Picayune listed the following as the notable public corruption cases in which the U.S. Attorney's Office achieved convictions under Letten's leadership: "ex-Jefferson Parish JudgesRonald Bodenheimer and Alan Green; formerOrleans Parish School Board PresidentEllenese Brooks-Simms; ex-state Sen.Derrick Shepherd; formerSt. Tammany Parish Councilman Joe Impastato; a whole bunch of folks who worked for or did business with the Orleans Parish School Board; several high-profile associates of ex-MayorMarc Morial; and ex-New Orleans City CouncilmanOliver Thomas, who had been pegged as a front-runner in the 2010 mayor's race."[8] These successes gained Letten bipartisan support, including from both Louisiana's U.S. Senators, DemocratMary Landrieu and RepublicanDavid Vitter.[8]
In September 2009, theTimes-Picayune praised Letten and theFBI for "bringing to justice" Bill Hubbard, who resigned asSaint John Parish president after receivingbribes of $20,000 from contractors.[9]
After being retained in office by President Obama, Letten pursued a number of federal civil rights investigations into theNew Orleans Police Department, a priority of the Obama administration'sDepartment of Justice.[4]
In 2010, the conservative provocateur videographer/pranksterJames O'Keefe, "who specialized in often deceptively edited undercover camera work to expose what he considers to liberal hypocrisies," pleaded guilty to federalmisdemeanor charges of entering the New Orleans offices of Senator Landrieu disguised as a telephone repairman and attempting to tamper with the office's phone system under false pretenses.[10][11] fellow activists who accompanied O'Keefe also faced prosecution.[10] Although the U.S. Attorney's Office prosecuted the case, Letten recused himself because he knew the father of one of the men involved.[10] In July 2013, after Letten left the U.S. Attorney's office to become assistant dean at Tulane law school, O'Keefe appeared at Letten's home, where he complained to Letten's wife about his prosecution, and later confronted Letten on the Tulane campus in a tense videotaped exchange. Letten called O'Keefe "scum" and told him to "stay away from my family."[10][11][12]
In December 2012, Letten resigned as U.S. Attorney, following revelations that senior prosecutors in Letten's office had made "provocative, even pugnacious comments about active criminal matters and other subjects under aliases at nola.com, the Web site ofThe Times-Picayune newspaper."[4] Senator Mary Landrieu andAttorney GeneralEric Holder paid tribute to Letten's service.[4]
In February 2013, Letten was appointed assistant dean of experiential learning at Tulane University Law School, his alma mater. Letten is in charge of the school'smoot-court competition and six legal clinics.[3][13]
In November 2015, Letten joined the New Orleans office of thelaw firm Butler Snow LLP asof counsel. Letten works with the firm's investigations andwhite-collar crimes group. He continues to simultaneously serve as Tulane assistant dean.[7][14]
Letten served in theUnited States Naval Reserve for two decades and retired as acommander. Letten was anaval intelligence officer, with roles including (among others)counter-intelligence andintelligence analysis. He spent more than twelve years as aNaval Criminal Investigative Service (NCIS) agent.[3]
Letten has been married to JoAnn Letten for over thirty years; they have two children.[3]
Letten has been noted for his "trademark" bushymustache.[15][16][17]