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{{Infobox officeholder
[[File:MorfordCraig.jpg|frame|right|Craig S. Morford]]
| honorific-prefix =
'''Craig S. Morford''' (born 1959) is an American attorney and former acting [[United States Deputy Attorney General]]. ▼
| NAMEname = Morford, = Craig S. Morford▼
| native_name =
| native_name_lang =
| honorific-suffix =
| image = MorfordCraig.jpg
| image_size =
| smallimage = <!--If this is specified, "image" should not be.-->
| alt =
| caption =
| order =
| office = [[United States Deputy Attorney General]]
|status = Acting
| term_start = July 26, 2007
| term_end = March 10, 2008
| alongside = <!--For two or more people serving in the same position from the same district. (e.g. United States Senators.)-->
| president = [[George W. Bush]]
| chancellor =
| governor =
| deputy =
| succeeding = <!--For President-elect or equivalent-->
| constituency =
| predecessor = [[Paul McNulty]]
| successor = [[Mark Filip]]
| prior_term =
| order2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| office2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| term_start2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| term_end2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| alongside2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| president2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| chancellor2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| succeeding2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| predecessor2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| successor2 = <!--Can be repeated up to 16 times by changing the number-->
| alma_mater = [[Hope College]] ([[Bachelor of Arts|BA]])<br />[[Valparaiso University School of Law|Valparaiso University]] ([[Juris Doctor|JD]])
}}▼
 
▲'''Craig S. Morford''' (born February 10, 1959{{citation needed|date=March 2014}}) is an American attorney and former acting [[United States Deputy Attorney General]].
== Personal life ==
Craig Morford grew up in [[Schenectady, New York]] in a middle-class family. His father, William, marketed [[Pillsbury Company|Pillsbury]] products to grocery stores in upstate New York and [[New England]]. His mother, Betty, was a homemaker who also sold women's clothing during in-home shows. His older brother, William is an antiques dealer. As a child, Morford was intrigued by "[[Perry Mason]]" and "[[Judd for the Defense]]" and dreamed of becoming a lawyer.
<ref name="pdextra">http://blog.cleveland.com/pdextra/2007/07/lead_attorney_found_strength_i.html</ref> He and his wife, Mary Jo, have four children, ages 13 to 22 and live in Rocky River, Ohio.<ref name="pdextra"/>
 
== Early life and education ==
== Education ==
InCraig 1981Morford grew up in [[Schenectady, heNew York]] graduated in 1981 with an [[Economics]] degree from [[Hope College, a small liberal arts school in Holland, Michigan and spent his junior year in Washington]]. He hadwas internshipsa with Sen. [[Harrison Schmitt]]member of Newthe MexicoCosmopolitan and [[Kimberly-Clark]] Corp.Fraternity. In 1984, heHe graduated from [[Valparaiso University School of Law]] in Indiana, 20th in his class of 871984.<ref name="pdextra">{{cite web|url=http://blog.cleveland.com/pdextra/2007/07/lead_attorney_found_strength_i.html|title = Lead attorney found strength in his beliefs|date = 18 July 2007}}</ref>
 
== Career ==
Morford has worked for the Justice Department for twenty years and has spent most of his career as a federal prosecutor pursuing public-corruption and organized- crime cases in [[Cleveland, Ohio]].
 
HisAs first job was with thean [[Internal Revenue Service]]'s districtattorney, counselhe officehelped in Cleveland. In 1983,win a seniorcivil attorneytax decidedevasion thejudgment IRSin should pursue a tax case1987 against [[James A. Traficant]], elected to Congress in 1984, shouldfor havefailing paidto pay taxes on the $163,000 he tookreceived from the mob. 1987, Morford and Richard Bloom argued the casefigures. Traficant, who had representedbeen himselfacquitted on a 1983 bribery charge, and won, chose to represented himself again however this time the verdictrelated wascriminal "lost"charges.<ref name="pdextra"/>
 
After joining the Justice Department's Organized Crime Strike Force in Cleveland, Morford helped convict the nation's largest pornography distributor, [[Reuben Sturman]], on tax evasion charges in 1990.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1992/Porn-King-Reuben-Sturman-Escapes-From-Desert-Prison-Camp/id-4dbd6cea4ff79dc95cde68da6d813d25l |title=Porn 'King' Reuben Sturman Escapes from Desert Prison Camp |access-date=2014-03-20 |archive-date=2014-03-20 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140320210137/http://www.apnewsarchive.com/1992/Porn-King-Reuben-Sturman-Escapes-From-Desert-Prison-Camp/id-4dbd6cea4ff79dc95cde68da6d813d25l |url-status=dead }}</ref>
1987, Morford was hired by the [[Strike Force]]{{Disambiguation needed|date=February 2013}} to help prosecute pornography czar, [[Reuben Sturman]], who was convicted of hiding and laundering his profits. He also teamed with [[James Wooley]] and prosecuted three [[Hells Angels]] accused of killing a man they mistakenly thought was a rival gang member.
 
From 1996 to 2002, Morford prosecuted more than 70 cases resulting in the convictions of elected officials, law enforcement officers and mob figures in northern Ohio. Those convicted included three county judges, Mahoning County Prosecutor James A. Philomena, Mahoning County Sheriff Philip Chance, and Youngstown mob boss Lenine "Lennie" Strollo, along with 28 associates.<ref name="pdextra"/>
Morford achieved convictions against mob boss, "Lennie" Lenine Strollo and his minions; several police officers, including Mahoning County Sheriff Philip Chance; three judges; eight lawyers; and the county prosecutor.<ref name="pdextra"/> From 1996-2002, he achieved 70 convictions of corrupt politicians and mob figures in Youngstown and the Mahoning Valley.
 
In 2002, Morford was lead prosecutor in the second criminal case against Traficant, then in his ninth term as a Democratic Congress member from Youngstown, Ohio. Traficant was convicted on charges of bribery, racketeering and tax evasion and sentenced to eight years in prison.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2009/09/02/AR2009090201497.html |title=Former Congressman James Traficant Is Released After 7 Years in Prison |first=Mary |last=Jordan |date=September 3, 2009 |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |accessdate=2022-07-02}}</ref>
Morford lead a task force that prosecuted Lucas County Republican Chairman Tom Noe and officials at the Ohio Bureau of Workers Compensation.<ref name="blog.cleveland.com">http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2008/03/craig_morford_exfederal_prosec.html</ref>
 
In 2004, Morford led a court-ordered Justice Department review of allegations of prosecutorial misconduct in a major terrorism case that followed the attacks of September 11, 2001. Morford's report concluded that prosecutors had improperly withheld evidence – e-mails, photographs, witness statements and other material – that cast doubt on the government's case. In a rare admission of error, the Justice Department asked a judge to dismiss charges against two convicted defendants.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2004/09/03/national/03terror.html|title=Judge Reverses Convictions in Detroit 'Terrorism' Case|newspaper=The New York Times|date=3 September 2004|last1=Hakim|first1=Danny}}</ref>
He briefly worked as acting U.S. attorney in [[Detroit]] and [[Nashville]].
 
In 2006, Morford led a task force that prosecuted Toledo coin dealer Tom Noe, a Republican fundraiser convicted of stealing from a rare-coin fund that he managed for the [[Ohio Bureau of Workers' Compensation]]. Then-Ohio Gov. [[Bob Taft]], a Republican, pleaded guilty in a separate state case to misdemeanor ethics charges for accepting gifts from Noe.<ref name="blog.cleveland.com">{{cite web|url=http://blog.cleveland.com/metro/2008/03/craig_morford_exfederal_prosec.html|title=Craig Morford, ex-federal prosecutor, takes Cardinal Health job|date=20 March 2008}}</ref>
In 2002, he was the lead prosecutor in a second case of then-Congressman [[James A. Traficant]], who was convicted of [[bribery]] and [[Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act|racketeering]].<ref>{{Cite news|last=Eggen |first=Dan |title=Morford Named To No. 2 Spot At Justice Dept. |newspaper=Washington Post |pages=A3 |date=July 19, 2007 |url=http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/07/18/AR2007071802234.html|postscript=<!--None-->}}.</ref> Morford was Acting [[United States Deputy Attorney General]] in 2007 and 2008, until the confirmation of [[Mark Filip]]. Senate investigation/confirmation would have been required for permanent appointment of Morford as the official Deputy Attorney General.
 
Morford served briefly as U.S. Attorney in [[Detroit]] and [[Nashville]]. He was named acting Deputy Attorney General, the No. 2 position in the Justice Department, in July 2007, and mentioned as a possible nominee for Attorney General.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/08/28/AR2007082800104.html |title=Sharp Questions Await Gonzales Successor |first=Lara Jakes |last=Jordan |date=August 28, 2007 |agency=[[Associated Press]] |newspaper=[[The Washington Post]] |accessdate=2022-07-02}}</ref>
He was formerly the Acting [[United States District Court for the Middle District of Tennessee|United States Attorney for the Middle District of Tennessee]] and the Eastern District of [[Michigan]].
 
Since May, 2008, Morford is the Chief Compliance Officer at Cardinal Health, a health care technology developer in Dublin, Ohio. He is responsible for company compliance with internal policies and outside regulations that govern the company's products, services and operations.<ref name="blog.cleveland.com"/>
 
While acting Deputy Attorney General, Morford wrote what is referred to as the "Morford Memo" establishing new guidelines for how federal prosecutors select and use compliance monitors in [[corporate crime]] settlements.<ref>https://www.justice.gov/dag/morford-useofmonitorsmemo-03072008.pdf {{Bare URL PDF|date=March 2022}}</ref> The department had previously been criticized when then-U.S. Attorney [[Chris Christie]] required a company to name former Attorney General [[John Ashcroft]] to a lucrative monitoring contract.<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.nytimes.com/2008/01/10/washington/10justice.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0|title = Ashcroft Deal Brings Scrutiny in Justice Dept|newspaper = The New York Times|date = 10 January 2008|last1 = Shenon|first1 = Philip}}</ref>
 
In May, 2008, Morford joined [[Cardinal Health]], a large healthcare services company in Dublin, Ohio, and is currently Chief Legal and Compliance Officer, overseeing legal, compliance, regulatory and government affairs.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://cardinalhealth.mediaroom.com/index.php?s=20295&item=122605|title = Cardinal Health Names Former Acting Deputy U.S. Attorney General Craig S. Morford to Chief Compliance Officer Post}}</ref>
 
{{s-start}}
{{s-legal}}
{{U.S. SecretaryCabinet official box
| before = [[Paul McNulty]]
| after = [[Mark Filip]]
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==External links==
*[ http://fl1.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/cnnhdocs/docs/traficantterrorism/traficant50401indtuskoubriti82802ind.pdf, '''''US v. JamesKARIM TrafficantKOUBRITI, et al.'''''], MayAugust 428, 20012002.
*{{C-SPAN|1025317}}
*[http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/includes/templates/library/flash_popup.php?pID=171263-2&clipStart=&clipStop= ''CSPAN'' video of Trafficant Congressional Hearing, Part 1] July 16, 2002.
*[http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/includes/templates/library/flash_popup.php?pID=171263-3&clipStart=&clipStop= ''CSPAN'' video of Trafficant Congressional Hearing, Part 2] July 16, 2002.
*[http://www.c-spanarchives.org/library/includes/templates/library/flash_popup.php?pID=171263-4&clipStart=&clipStop= ''CSPAN'' video of Trafficant Congressional Hearing, Part 3] July 16, 2002.
*[http://fl1.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/hdocs/docs/terrorism/uskoubriti82802ind.pdf '''''US v. KARIM KOUBRITI, et al.'''''], August 28, 2002.
*[http://files.findlaw.com/news.findlaw.com/cnn/docs/doj/convertino21304cmp.pdf '''''Richard Convertino v. USA'''''], February 13, 2004.
*[http://www.thislife.org/Radio_Episode.aspx?episode=356, ''"The Prosecutor"''], May 30, 2008
 
{{Persondata <!-- Metadata: see [[Wikipedia:Persondata]]. -->
▲| NAME = Morford, Craig S.
| ALTERNATIVE NAMES =
| SHORT DESCRIPTION =
| DATE OF BIRTH = 1959
| PLACE OF BIRTH =
| DATE OF DEATH =
| PLACE OF DEATH =
▲}}
{{DEFAULTSORT:Morford, Craig S.}}
[[Category:United States Deputy Attorneys General]]
[[Category:Hope College alumni]]
[[Category:George W. Bush Administrationadministration personnel]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:Valparaiso University School of Law alumni]]
[[Category:1959 births]]
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Craig_S._Morford"