Springfield, Ill. – Jeffrey B. Lang has been named Acting U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois with the resignation of U.S. Attorney Rodger A. Heaton. Mr. Heaton resigned from public office, effective midnight, August 31, 2009, and announced his intention to return to private practice as a litigation partner with a private law firm later this fall.

Mr. Lang has served as First Assistant U.S. Attorney since September 2007 and as Supervisory Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Rock Island Division since February 2002. An Illinois native and a career prosecutor, Mr. Lang has served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney since 1991. Prior to relocating to the Central District of Illinois in 1995, Mr. Lang was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District of Florida. Mr. Lang also previously served as a Special Agent with the Federal Bureau of Investigation (1983-1991) and with the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service’s Division of Law Enforcement (1977-1983.)

Mr. Heaton served as U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois since December 1, 2005, when he was appointed to the post by the Attorney General. He was nominated to the position by President George W. Bush and on September 29, 2006, the U.S. Senate confirmed Mr. Heaton’s nomination.

Mr. Heaton stated, “It has been an extraordinary privilege to serve as the United States Attorney and to work with the outstanding men and women in this office. For nearly four years, I have witnessed their sacrifices to help ensure that central Illinois is a safer and better place to live. Together, with our federal, state and local law enforcement partners, we have dramatically increased the number of federal prosecutions in this district, and have removed many of the worst offenders in our communities for many years.”

The office of the U.S. Attorney for the Central District of Illinois is responsible for prosecution of federal crimes committed in any of the district’s 46 counties. The office has its headquarters in Springfield with staffed branch offices in Urbana, Peoria, and Rock Island, and is responsible for prosecuting a broad range of federal crimes, including terrorism, violent crime, public corruption, tax evasion, drug trafficking, child pornography, and civil rights offenses. The office also represents the United States, its agencies and employees, in civil suits brought against or on behalf of the United States in the Central District.