Holder Dispatches Team of Lawyers to Oil Spill

(RTTNews) - Attorney General Eric Holder announced Friday that he is dispatching a team of attorneys from multiple divisions within the Justice Department to New Orleans to meet with the U.S. Attorney and response teams and to monitor the oil spill in the Gulf of Mexico.

"The British Petroleum (BP) oil spill has already cost lives and created a major environmental incident," Holder said. "The Justice Department stands ready to make available every resource at our disposal to vigorously enforce the laws that protect the people who work and reside near the Gulf, the wildlife, the environment and the American taxpayers."

Holder said the team would be led by Ignacia Moreno, Assistant Attorney General for the Environment and Natural Resources Division, and Tony West, Assistant Attorney General for the Civil Division. The combined group from the Department plans to make a site visit and meet with representatives from federal agencies working on the response.