Difference between revisions of "Benjamin Civiletti"

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{{person
 
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|WP=https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Benjamin_Civiletti
 
 
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|cspan=https://www.c-span.org/person/?benjaminciviletti
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|spouses=Gaile Lundgren Civiletti
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|alma_mater=Johns Hopkins University, University of Maryland Law School
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|birth_date= July 17, 1935
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|birth_name=Benjamin Richard Civiletti
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|birth_place=Peekskill, New York, United States
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|religion=Roman Catholic
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|description=[[United States Attorney General]] during the [[Presidency of Jimmy Carter|Carter administration]], from 1979 to 1981.
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|political_parties=Democratic
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|children=Benjamin H. Civiletti Andrew S. Civiletti, Lynne T. Civiletti
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|employment={{job
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|title=United States Attorney General
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|start=August 16, 1979
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|end=January 19, 1981
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}}{{job
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|title=United States Deputy Attorney General
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|start=1978
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|end=August 16, 1979
 
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'''Benjamin Richard Civiletti''' is an American lawyer who was the [[United States Attorney General]] during the [[Presidency of Jimmy Carter|Carter administration]], from 1979 to 1981. The first [[Italian American]] to lead the Department of Justice, he previously was the [[Deputy Attorney General]] and [[United States Assistant Attorney General|Assistant Attorney General]] for the Criminal Division. He is a former senior partner in the [[Baltimore]]-based law firm of [[Venable LLP]] (known until 2003 as Venable, Baetjer & Howard),<ref>https://www.justice.gov/ag/bio/civiletti-benjamin-richard</ref> where he specialized in commercial litigation and internal investigations.
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Since 2001, Civiletti has been one of the three members of the Independent Review Board,<ref>https://teamster.org/content/independent-review-board</ref> a board that the [[International Brotherhood of Teamsters]] union must answer to when allegations of corruption or [[organized crime]] infiltration surface under the terms of a [[consent decree]] issued in 1989 <ref>http://www.tdu.org/news_teamster-corruption-and-consent-decree</ref> by a [[United States district court|federal district court]] judgment.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20180825131125/https://teamster.org/content/independent-review-board</ref>
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== Early life and career ==
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Born in [[Peekskill, New York]] in 1935, Civiletti graduated from [[Johns Hopkins University]], where he received an [[Bachelor of Arts|A.B.]] in [[psychology]] in 1957,<ref>http://www.venable.com/benjamin-r-civiletti</ref> and from the [[University of Maryland School of Law]] in [[Baltimore, Maryland]], where he received a [[Bachelor of Laws|LLB]] in 1961.<ref>https://www.venable.com/benjamin-r-civiletti/</ref><ref name="DPCommission">https://web.archive.org/web/20100621174329/http://www.governor.maryland.gov//pressreleases/080710b.asp</ref>
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Civiletti was a [[law clerk]] for [[W. Calvin Chesnut]], a judge on the [[United States District Court for the District of Maryland|U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland]], and became an Assistant [[United States Attorney]] in [[Baltimore]] a year after graduating from law school.
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[[File:Benjamin Civiletti (1979).jpg|thumb|left|Benjamin Civiletti (1979)]]
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Civiletti was the [[United States Deputy Attorney General|Deputy Attorney General]] when his boss [[Griffin Bell|Griffin B. Bell]] resigned.  He was elevated to the top job in the [[United States Department of Justice|Justice Department]] on July 19, 1979. Although Bell resigned voluntarily, his resignation occurred during a major Cabinet shakeup in the Carter administration. [[United States Secretary of Health and Human Services|Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare]] [[Joseph A. Califano, Jr.]] and [[United States Secretary of the Treasury|Secretary of the Treasury]] [[W. Michael Blumenthal]] also resigned the same day. Transportation Secretary [[Brock Adams]] soon followed.
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Civiletti had come to Bell's attention when he was forming the Justice Department for the newly elected president by Carter's close confidant, [[Charles Kirbo]], a law partner of Bell's who had once been involved in a case with Civiletti.  Civiletti was [[United States Assistant Attorney General|assistant attorney general]] in charge of the [[United States Department of Justice Criminal Division|Criminal Division]] and was elevated to [[United States Deputy Attorney General|deputy attorney general]] after the resignation of Carter's first deputy attorney general, [[Peter F. Flaherty]], the former [[List of mayors of Pittsburgh|mayor of Pittsburgh]].
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As the [[United States Attorney General|Attorney General]], Civiletti argued several important cases on behalf of the [[Federal government of the United States|U.S. government]]. Notably, he argued before the [[International Court of Justice]] on behalf of Americans being held captive in Iran during the [[Iran hostage crisis]], in the ''Case Concerning United States Diplomatic and Consular Staff in Tehran''.<ref>https://web.archive.org/web/20140223012239/http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/64/9553.pdf</ref> He also argued before the [[Supreme Court of the United States|Supreme Court]] in support of the government's right to [[denaturalization|denaturalize]] [[Nazi Germany|Nazi]] [[war crime|war criminals]] in ''[[Fedorenko v. United States]]''.
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Opinions written by Civiletti as attorney general, which interpreted the Constitution and federal law to say that government cannot operate until Congress agrees on a spending bill, set the stage for partial [[government shutdown]]s in later years.<ref>https://www.npr.org/2011/04/08/135247483/who-raised-the-stakes-in-government-shutdown</ref>
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While serving as Attorney General, and in spite of public opposition from Puerto Rico's Governor who believed it would encourage more terrorism, Civiletti recommended, and President Carter agreed, to a commutation of sentences to time served for four unrepentant Puerto Rican nationalists convicted of [[1954 United States Capitol shooting|shooting five U.S. Congressmen at the U.S. Capitol]].<ref>https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/24944</ref><ref>http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,947395,00.html</ref>
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On July 10, 2008, Maryland Governor [[Martin O'Malley]] announced that Civiletti would serve as the chairman of the Maryland Commission on Capital Punishment, set up to study the application of [[capital punishment in Maryland]] and make a recommendation on the abolition of the death penalty in Maryland.<ref name="DPCommission"/> On November 12, 2008, the Commission voted 13-7, with Civiletti voting with the majority, to recommend that the [[Maryland General Assembly]] abolish capital punishment in the state.<ref>http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2008-11-13/news/0811120184_1_death-penalty-executions-in-maryland-capital-punishmen</ref>
 
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==References==
 
==References==
 
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Latest revision as of 15:12, 22 August 2022

Person.png Benjamin Civiletti   C-SPANRdf-entity.pngRdf-icon.png
(lawyer)
Benjamin Civiletti.jpg
BornBenjamin Richard Civiletti
July 17, 1935
Peekskill, New York, United States
Alma materJohns Hopkins University, University of Maryland Law School
ReligionRoman Catholic
Children • Benjamin H. Civiletti Andrew S. Civiletti
• Lynne T. Civiletti
SpouseGaile Lundgren Civiletti
PartyDemocratic
United States Attorney General during the Carter administration, from 1979 to 1981.

Employment.png United States Attorney General

In office
August 16, 1979 - January 19, 1981
DeputyCharles Byron Renfrew
Preceded byGriffin Bell

Benjamin Richard Civiletti is an American lawyer who was the United States Attorney General during the Carter administration, from 1979 to 1981. The first Italian American to lead the Department of Justice, he previously was the Deputy Attorney General and Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division. He is a former senior partner in the Baltimore-based law firm of Venable LLP (known until 2003 as Venable, Baetjer & Howard),[1] where he specialized in commercial litigation and internal investigations.

Since 2001, Civiletti has been one of the three members of the Independent Review Board,[2] a board that the International Brotherhood of Teamsters union must answer to when allegations of corruption or organized crime infiltration surface under the terms of a consent decree issued in 1989 [3] by a federal district court judgment.[4]

Early life and career

Born in Peekskill, New York in 1935, Civiletti graduated from Johns Hopkins University, where he received an A.B. in psychology in 1957,[5] and from the University of Maryland School of Law in Baltimore, Maryland, where he received a LLB in 1961.[6][7]

Civiletti was a law clerk for W. Calvin Chesnut, a judge on the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, and became an Assistant United States Attorney in Baltimore a year after graduating from law school.

Benjamin Civiletti (1979)

Civiletti was the Deputy Attorney General when his boss Griffin B. Bell resigned. He was elevated to the top job in the Justice Department on July 19, 1979. Although Bell resigned voluntarily, his resignation occurred during a major Cabinet shakeup in the Carter administration. Secretary of Health, Education, and Welfare Joseph A. Califano, Jr. and Secretary of the Treasury W. Michael Blumenthal also resigned the same day. Transportation Secretary Brock Adams soon followed.

Civiletti had come to Bell's attention when he was forming the Justice Department for the newly elected president by Carter's close confidant, Charles Kirbo, a law partner of Bell's who had once been involved in a case with Civiletti. Civiletti was assistant attorney general in charge of the Criminal Division and was elevated to deputy attorney general after the resignation of Carter's first deputy attorney general, Peter F. Flaherty, the former mayor of Pittsburgh.

As the Attorney General, Civiletti argued several important cases on behalf of the U.S. government. Notably, he argued before the International Court of Justice on behalf of Americans being held captive in Iran during the Iran hostage crisis, in the Case Concerning United States Diplomatic and Consular Staff in Tehran.[8] He also argued before the Supreme Court in support of the government's right to denaturalize Nazi war criminals in Fedorenko v. United States.

Opinions written by Civiletti as attorney general, which interpreted the Constitution and federal law to say that government cannot operate until Congress agrees on a spending bill, set the stage for partial government shutdowns in later years.[9]

While serving as Attorney General, and in spite of public opposition from Puerto Rico's Governor who believed it would encourage more terrorism, Civiletti recommended, and President Carter agreed, to a commutation of sentences to time served for four unrepentant Puerto Rican nationalists convicted of shooting five U.S. Congressmen at the U.S. Capitol.[10][11]

On July 10, 2008, Maryland Governor Martin O'Malley announced that Civiletti would serve as the chairman of the Maryland Commission on Capital Punishment, set up to study the application of capital punishment in Maryland and make a recommendation on the abolition of the death penalty in Maryland.[7] On November 12, 2008, the Commission voted 13-7, with Civiletti voting with the majority, to recommend that the Maryland General Assembly abolish capital punishment in the state.[12]

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References

  1. ↑ https://www.justice.gov/ag/bio/civiletti-benjamin-richard
  2. ↑ https://teamster.org/content/independent-review-board
  3. ↑ http://www.tdu.org/news_teamster-corruption-and-consent-decree
  4. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20180825131125/https://teamster.org/content/independent-review-board
  5. ↑ http://www.venable.com/benjamin-r-civiletti
  6. ↑ https://www.venable.com/benjamin-r-civiletti/
  7. ↑ a b https://web.archive.org/web/20100621174329/http://www.governor.maryland.gov//pressreleases/080710b.asp
  8. ↑ https://web.archive.org/web/20140223012239/http://www.icj-cij.org/docket/files/64/9553.pdf
  9. ↑ https://www.npr.org/2011/04/08/135247483/who-raised-the-stakes-in-government-shutdown
  10. ↑ https://www.presidency.ucsb.edu/node/24944
  11. ↑ http://content.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,947395,00.html
  12. ↑ http://articles.baltimoresun.com/2008-11-13/news/0811120184_1_death-penalty-executions-in-maryland-capital-punishmen
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