A William & Mary Law School alumnus is now the head federal law enforcement official in eastern Virginia.
The U.S. Senate confirmed G. Zachary Terwilliger as the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia, according to a press release from the Eastern District. Terwilliger was appointed to the position by Attorney General Jeff Sessions in May.
Terwilliger graduated from William & Mary’s Law School in 2007 with the highest honors, the release said.
“I am humbled, thankful and deeply honored to be confirmed as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia,” Terwilliger said. “As a federal prosecutor who focused on complex violent crime, organized crime, fraud and human-trafficking cases for almost a decade, I have had the privilege of working with some of the best law enforcement officers, prosecutors, attorneys, and colleagues in the country.”
In his new role, Terwilliger will oversee all prosecution of federal crimes and litigation of civil matters of importance to the United States in the Eastern District.
A staff of about 250 prosecutors, civil litigators and support personnel will answer to Terwilliger. Their offices are located in Newport News, Norfolk, Richmond and Alexandria.
Terwilliger said the Eastern District of Virginia will continue to fight violent crime, national security threats, criminal immigration offenses and the opioid crisis. He pointed out that in the last three months the Eastern District charged nearly 200 cases involving illegal firearms, drug trafficking and criminal immigration.
“This important work has been recognized by the department, and with tremendous support from the Attorney General and our administrative staff here, I have had the great fortune to hire 25 new employees, including 15 new assistant United States attorneys, who will be force multipliers for our mission,” Terwilliger said.
Since being appointed, Terwilliger said he has visited each sector of the district and met more than 100 law enforcement officials, including chiefs of police, commonwealth’s attorneys and sheriffs.
Terwilliger served as associate deputy attorney general and chief of staff in the office of the deputy attorney general at the Department of Justice before being appointed U.S. attorney for the Eastern District.
He thanked Sessions, President Donald Trump and Sens. Mark Warner and Tim Kaine for their roles in his confirmation.
During his time at William & Mary, Terwilliger had a summer clerkship with the Eastern District.
Another William & Mary alum, Thomas T. Cullen J.D. ’04, is the U.S. attorney for the Western District of Virginia.
