Statement from outgoing U.S. Attorney Justin Herdman

My last day as United States Attorney coincides with a huge weekend for Ohio football.  Once again, the Browns and Buckeyes will be going into matchups with heavily-favored opponents, at seemingly impossible odds to succeed.  Once more, it feels like Ohio against the world.  When I started this job in 2017, that feeling extended to the broader community, beyond sports, in our great state.  Chinese fentanyl, brought to our doorsteps by Mexican cartels and peddled on our streets by gun-toting violent gangs, was killing thousands of Ohioans every year.  Heartless healthcare professionals, who had abandoned their oaths for profit, were driving addiction and flooding our neighborhoods with prescription painkillers.  Eastern European cybercriminals preyed on our senior citizens.  Corrupt public officials traded votes for cash and, yes, carrot cake.  White supremacists threatened our communities of faith and sought to incite a race war through their criminal actions. Terrorists plotted mass-casualty attacks.  And sex traffickers moved human beings like cattle from abuser to abuser.  But we have fought back.  We have locked up drug dealers, taken guns off the street, broken up cybercrime rings, and put away terrorists.  The bad guys are on the run and we will pursue them to the ends of the Earth.

Take heart Ohio.  We may feel that the world is against us, but we’ve beat long odds before.  When America needed to put a man on the moon, they called for an Ohioan.  When any NBA team needs to win a championship, they call for an Ohioan.  When a football team has needed to win a game, time and again throughout history, they have called on Ohioans.  And when our communities need someone to slug it out with the bad guys, they will always be able to call upon the great Ohioans who make up the ranks of our law enforcement agencies.

This may be my last day as U.S. Attorney, but the men and women of this office are always on your side, Ohio.

Go Browns.  Go Buckeyes.