Protection of Government Processes—Obstruction of Justice

The obstruction of justice statutes include 18 U.S.C. §§ 1501, 1503, 1505, 1510-1513, and 1516-1520. Generally, obstruction of justice offenses fall under the supervisory responsibility of the Division and Section of the Department having responsibility for, or expertise in, the basic subject matter. For example, obstruction of an investigation into health care fraud would fall under the supervision of the Fraud Section of the Criminal Division; obstruction involving violence against a witness would fall under the supervision of the Violent Crime and Racketeering Section of the Criminal Division; obstruction of a gambling investigation would fall under the supervision of the Violent Crime and Racketeering Section of the Criminal Division; and obstruction of a public corruption investigation or a congressional proceeding would fall under the supervision of the Public Integrity Section of the Criminal Division.

If such responsibility cannot be identified, supervisory responsibility rests with the Fraud Section of the Criminal Division.

[updated January 2020]