By Steve Neavling
Matthew M. Graves, the U.S. attorney for the District of Columbia, announced Monday that he is stepping down from his role just days before President-elect Donald Trump is set to take office, The Washington Post reports.
During his tenure, Graves led what the Justice Department has described as its most extensive investigation to date: the prosecution of individuals involved in the Jan. 6, 2021, attack on the U.S. Capitol. Trump has indicated plans to pardon many of those convicted, potentially reversing much of Graves’s work.
Graves assumed his position in November 2021, nearly a year after the Capitol insurrection. Under his leadership, approximately 1,600 people faced charges, and more than 1,250 were convicted. His office secured landmark seditious conspiracy convictions against leaders of the Oath Keepers and Proud Boys, marking the first such verdicts in the United States since the 1990s. Out of more than 170 trials related to the Capitol riot, federal prosecutors achieved a 99% conviction rate.
Graves will officially step down on Jan. 16.
Bridget M. Fitzpatrick, who has served as principal assistant U.S. attorney for three years, will step into the role of acting U.S. attorney until President-elect Trump nominates a successor, subject to Senate approval. It is customary for U.S. attorneys to resign when a president from the opposing political party takes office.
“Serving as the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia has been the honor of a lifetime,” Graves said Monday. “I am deeply thankful to Congresswoman [Eleanor] Holmes Norton for recommending me; to President [Joe] Biden for nominating me; and to Attorney General [Merrick] Garland for placing his trust in me.”
Graves began his career with the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2007, handling criminal cases in both Superior Court and U.S. District Court. By 2010, he had risen to senior assistant U.S. attorney within the fraud and public corruption section, eventually becoming its acting chief before being appointed U.S. attorney in 2021.
Beyond the Jan. 6 prosecutions, Graves’s office handled a wide array of high-profile cases. His team oversaw the Justice Department’s largest-ever seizure of cryptocurrency, recovering $3.6 billion tied to the Bitfinex global cryptocurrency exchange hack. Additionally, the office secured a $377 million settlement with government contractor Booz Allen Hamilton in a record-breaking procurement fraud case.
On the local level, Graves’s office prosecuted significant cases, including the conviction of two D.C. police officers for their role in the 2020 death of teenager Karon Hylton. The office is also pursuing bribery charges against D.C. Council member Trayon White Sr.
Amid rising crime rates following the coronavirus pandemic, Graves prioritized addressing violent crime. His office indicted more homicide cases annually during his tenure than any year in the prior decade, securing severe sentences for multiple sexual predators. Violent crime in the District is projected to decline by over 30% in 2024, which his office said would be the lowest rate in more than 50 years.
Using data analysis to enhance federal prosecutions, Graves focused efforts on individuals contributing to gun- and drug-related violence. His office worked to dismantle violent street crews across the city, a strategy credited with reducing violence in several neighborhoods.
