Law & order

Sessions seen shifting DOJ focus from white-collar to violent crimes

President Trump and Attorney General Jeff Sessions have made it clear they want to crack down on drugs, violent crime and illegal immigration, signaling what some experts say could be a shift in resources away from prosecuting white-collar criminals on Wall Street and beyond.

Sessions, visiting the southern border, sent a memo Tuesday to all 94 U.S. attorneys asking prosecutors to put more focus on immigration offenses. This was after he sent a memo last week announcing the creation of task force groups to focus on violent crimes, sentencing policies, illegal immigration, human trafficking and more. 

Not on the list: white-collar crimes.

White-collar prosecutions in the U.S. fall under a pretty big umbrella. Typically, they involve non-violent, financially motivated offenses that cover everything from insider trading to embezzlement to Ponzi schemes to identity theft.