PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — U.S. Attorney William McSwain has officially resigned from the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
He has served as the chief federal law enforcement officer in the district since April 2018. He was appointed by President Donald Trump.
He will step down on Jan. 22, which is customary when a new U.S. president takes office.
U.S. attorneys are presidentially appointed. Pennsylvania U.S. Sens. Pat Toomey and Bob Casey will search for a new appointee.
During McSwain’s tenure, the U.S. Attorney’s Office indicted 669 cases — the highest number of cases in a decade. The office also charged nearly 900 defendants in 2019, a 49% increase from the year before.
He brought corruption charges against Philadelphia City Councilmembers Bobby Henon and Kenyatta Johnson and IBEW Local 98 leader John “Johnny Doc” Dougherty, as well as former Allentown Mayor Ed Pawlowski.
Often sparing with Philadelphia District Attorney Larry Krasner, McSwain took on some Philadelphia homicide cases, criticizing Krasner for lessening charges or giving plea deals.
In June 2019, his office oversaw one of the largest drug seizures in U.S. history from a cargo ship that had more than 20 tons of cocaine on board.
Most recently, McSwain charged the four men accused of killing Philadelphia SWAT Sgt. James O’Connor almost a year ago.
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And earlier this week, McSwain’s office won a lawsuit in appellate court against the safe injection site nonprofit Safehouse.
In a statement, Fraternal Order of Police Lodge 5 President John McNesby called McSwain a “true law enforcement partner and colleague.”
“We’ve witnessed first-hand his compassion for victims, especially seeking justice for our fallen hero, Sergeant Jimmy O'Connor, his widow, Terri and all of our colleagues with the Philadelphia police department,” McNesby wrote. “McSwain has served our city and region with the utmost professionalism and transparency. We wish him nothing but success in his next endeavor.”
First Assistant U.S. Attorney Jennifer Williams will take over as the acting U.S. attorney until Toomey and Casey find a replacement.
McSwain will return to private practice in Philadelphia — at least for the time being. He has teased he may run for another political office.