Gonzales and Justice Department Raises Their Export Control Enforcement Profile
The first-ever National Export Control Coordinator for the Department of Justice was appointed last June 20, 2007. Steven W. Pelak, a veteran prosecutor for 18 years, has been an Assistant U.S. Attorney and Senior Litigation Counsel in the National Security Section of the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia and, since September 2001, has served as the Anti- Terrorism Coordinator for the U.S. Attorney’s Office. Mr. Pelak is detailed to the Counter-espionage Section of the Justice Department’s National Security Division, wherein he will have some of the following responsibilities:
- development of comprehensive training materials on export control investigations and prosecutions for federal prosecutors nationwide
- solicit and receive regular progress reports from U.S. Attorneys’ offices on the development of export control cases
- coordinate between the Justice Department and the many other U.S. law enforcement, licensing and intelligence agencies that play a role in export enforcement.
Attorney General Alberto Gonzales mentioned in his June 11 speech on nuclear terrorism that the Justice Department’s National Security Division where federal prosecutors were provided instruction and guidance on export control cases, with trainers from the Justice Department and the relevant investigative agents on hand providing comprehensive prosecutorial instruction.
