A Look Back: DOJ Paralegal Sentenced in 2023 for Undermining Justice

The case of former Department of Justice (DOJ) paralegal Tawanna Hilliard, who was sentenced to 33 months in prison, provides a stark lesson on the severity of crimes aimed at undermining the judicial system. Convicted of Witness Retaliation and Obstruction of Justice for exposing cooperating witnesses online, her actions struck at the heart of law enforcement's ability to protect sources and pursue justice.

Following a one-week trial, Hilliard was convicted in 2023. She was sentenced on Tuesday, March 14, 2023.

Here is an explanation of the laws surrounding this matter and the severe consequences associated with the crimes.

1. The Laws and What They Mean

The charges brought against Hilliard—and her subsequent conviction—are among the most serious crimes against the administration of justice.

Witness Retaliation

The Law: Federal law prohibits harming a person, or attempting to harm them, with the intent to retaliate against that person for providing truthful information to a law enforcement officer concerning the commission of a federal offense.

Hilliard's Crime: Hilliard did not need to physically assault the witnesses to be found guilty. By uploading the witnesses' post-arrest statements to YouTube, she intended to expose them to violent consequences from the 5-9 Brims gang. The videos served as the mechanism of retaliation, labeling the witnesses as "snitches" to a violent community and immediately resulting in death threats and relocation for the victims.

Obstruction of Justice

The Law: This statute criminalizes any act taken with the intent to influence, impede, or obstruct the administration of justice in connection with a pending judicial proceeding. It is a broad charge designed to protect the integrity of the courts and investigations.

Hilliard's Crime: Her actions obstructed justice in two ways:

Impeding Investigation/Trial: By disclosing the protected witness information, she hampered the ongoing investigation into the gang and jeopardized the prosecution of her son and his associates.

Intimidating Future Witnesses: Such a public exposure and the resulting threats discourage other individuals from cooperating with law enforcement in the future, thus impeding the "due administration of justice" system-wide.

2. The Consequences

The consequences in this case reflect the serious threat that insider crimes and witness intimidation pose to the rule of law.

Witness Retaliation: This is a Federal felony with a potential sentence of up to 10 years in prison. The sentence punishes the direct harm caused to individuals who bravely cooperated, reinforcing the message that the government will protect its witnesses.

Obstruction of Justice: This is a Federal felony with a potential sentence of up to 20 years in prison, depending on the specific statute violated. The sentence punishes the direct harm caused to the system itself—the ability of law enforcement and courts to function fairly and effectively.

Conspiracy: Additional charges for agreeing with another person (her son, Tyquan Hilliard) to commit the underlying crimes. This allows prosecutors to hold all participants accountable, even if their role was not the primary action.

The Final Sentence

Tawanna Hilliard received a sentence of 33 months (2 years and 9 months) in federal prison.

This sentence reflects the egregious abuse of trust, as she used her position as a DOJ paralegal to obtain information and betray her oath to serve justice.

Her co-defendant and son, Tyquan Hilliard, received a longer sentence of 63 months (5 years and 3 months) for his role in the witness tampering conspiracy, reflecting his underlying gang activity and his direction of the crime.

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