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October 3, 2011
Austin's Robert Pitman sworn in as U.S. attorney
In an informal ceremony at Austin’s federal courthouse this morning, Robert Pitman took an oath and became U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Texas.
Pitman, nominated by President Barack Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate last week, had been a U.S. magistrate judge since 2003.
Pitman, at right, did not make a speech after he was sworn in by U.S. District Judge Sam Sparks. He said that would come at a formal investiture scheduled in about two weeks.
In a written statement, Pitman said: “There is no greater honor for a lawyer than to represent the people of this country, and I will work hard to justify the confidence placed in me by the president and the senators.”
Pitman is now the top prosecutor in a district that includes 68 central, west and south Texas counties and includes Austin, San Antonio and a wide swath of the U.S./Mexico border. The Western District is one of four federal judicial districts in Texas.
“I’m looking forward to working with the men and women in the federal law enforcement community,” Pitman said in the statement, “to ensure that laws of the United States are enforced fairly, responsibly and diligently, and that the tax-paying public gets the service they are paying for.”
The Western District has been without a presidentially selected U.S. attorney since George W. Bush nominee Johnny Sutton left the office in 2009 for private practice. Prosecutor John Murphy had been leading the district.
Pitman had served as a federal prosecutor before he was chosen by Austin federal district judges to serve as a magistrate judge. He was the acting U.S. attorney for the Western District after the Sept. 11 terrorist attacks.
After the oath, Sparks jokingly told the crowd gathered in his courtroom for the swearing in: “Judge (Lee) Yeakel and I gave him a list of the things we want him to do.”
Sparks went on, “And as soon as I gave him this oath, I am sure he tore them up.”
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January 29, 2010
Memorial set for Travis prosecutor remembered for child-welfare work
A memorial service has been scheduled for Ann Forman, the Travis County Assistant District Attorney who died Thursday of breast cancer.
You can read her obituary from today’s Statesman here.
The service will be at 3 p.m. on Tuesday, February 2 at Wesley United Methodist Church, 1160 San Bernard Street, in Austin.
Forman, 51, was the chief of a unit of assistant district attorneys that represent Child Protective Services in cases involving children seized by the state amid allegations of abuse or neglect.
Her colleagues remember her as a passionate advocate for children. Her friends recall the married mother of two teenagers as a good listener, an avid traveler and a smart and gutsy woman.
She is shown in a picture above right during a trip to London about four years ago.
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January 15, 2010
DA announces new assignments among her top deputies
Earlier today Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg revealed in an interview that she plans to soon assign a prosecutor to work overnight with police to review arrests and plans a deferred prosecution program. Read the story here.
During that interview, Lehmberg also announced some recent shuffling of the top prosecutors in her office.
Here are the moves:
• Buddy Meyer was promoted from trial division chief to a new position — trial bureau director. In this position he will oversee the trial division and the grand jury intake division.
• Robert Smith, who has been chief of the 299th District Court prosecution team, becomes courts director, overseeing the day-to-day operation of the prosecutors in the county’s 7 trial courts and the magistrate court.
• Gary Cobb, a former grand jury division prosecutor who tried the Paul Devoe capital murder case last year, becomes director of the office’s grand jury division. In addition, Cobb will spearhead the office’s training and recruitment efforts.
• Mary Farrington was promoted to chief of the 299th District Court to replace Smith.
• Former 390th District Court chief Darla Davis takes over as chief of the insurance prosecution division.
• Steven Brand was promoted and will take over as chief of the 390th District Court.
• Longtime family justice division criminal prosecutions chief Allison Wetzel takes over as court chief in the 147th District Court.
• Former 147th District Court chief Bill Bishop moves to the head 427th District Court prosecution team.
• Prosecutor Efrain DeLaFuente, who had been permanently assigned to the yogurt shop murder cases, which were dismissed in October, takes over as chief of the 167th District Court.
• Beverly Mathews moves from the public integrity unit to family justice division where she will prosecute child abuse cases.
• Gail Van Winkle, the longtime chief of the 167th District Court, is the new white-collar crime unit chief.
• Former white-collar crime unit chief Patty Robertson is the new environmental prosecutor.
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