A new acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York (EDNY) was sworn in on Monday to replace Mark J. Lesko, who will soon be appointed acting Assistant Attorney General for the Department of Justice’s National Security Division, federal officials said.
Jacquelyn M. Kasulis is now serving in the role after she was sworn in by U.S. District Court Judge Margo K. Brodie, the chief judge for the EDNY. Kasulis previously served as First Assistant U.S. Attorney, a position she will continue to hold. She has also served as the Chief Assistant United States Attorney since March 2021.
“I look forward to leading and supporting the men and women of the office as they work tirelessly with our law enforcement and agency partners to ensure the safety of our community and pursue the cause of justice,” Kasulis said in a statement. “I am especially grateful to the members of the office for their unwavering commitment to the people of this district and the country during the pandemic and look forward to assisting the office as it emerges from the unprecedented challenges of the last year.”
As Chief Assistant U.S. Attorney, Kasulis has been second-in-command, overseeing the criminal, civil, administrative, and appeals divisions and daily operations of the office, including its Covid-19 response.
Kasulis first joined the U.S. Attorney’s office in 2008 and has served in the general crimes, organized crime, and business and securities fraud sections, holding chief roles in several of those divisions over the years. She has helped lead the investigation and prosecution of numerous high profile cases, including United States v. Peister, which led to the conviction of an investment fund manager who ran a $17 million Ponzi scheme on Long Island and defrauded about 75 investors. She also led prosecutions of more than 15 Genovese crime family members in United States v. Depiro, et al. and the trial team of a Gambino crime family associate in United States v. Burke.
Kasulis holds a bachelor’s degree in history from Davidson College in North Carolina and earned her law degree from Columbia Law School in 2003. In her early career, she was a litigation associate for four years at Kirkland & Ellis LLP in New York.
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