Nevada to get 3 more U.S. prosecutors amid federal hiring spree

Nevada will soon have three additional assistant U.S. attorneys who specialize in prosecuting violent, opioid-related and immigration crimes, according to the U.S. Department of Justice.

The 311 new positions across the country announced Tuesday, touted as “the largest increase in decades,” is the Trump administration’s “dramatic step to increase resources to combat violent crime, enforce our immigration laws, and help roll back the devastating opioid crisis,” officials said.

Some 190 of the new positions will address violent crime cases, 86 will work civil enforcement, and 35 will prosecute immigration cases, officials said. Nevada will allocate one attorney for each specialized area.

“When we can eliminate wasteful spending, one of my first questions to my staff is if we can deploy more prosecutors to where they are needed,” said U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions in a statement. “I have personally worked to re-purpose existing funds to support this critical mission, and as a former federal prosecutor myself, my expectations could not be higher.”

“We look forward to hiring talented, experienced and service-minded individuals who are committed to making Nevada a safer state,” said Dayle Elieson, the top federal prosecutor in Nevada, in the statement.