John Fishwick, Jr.
Kionte Spencer
From the U.S. Attorney’s Office for Western Virginia: First Assistant United States Attorney Rick A. Mountcastle will handle all matters pertaining to the shooting death of Kionte Spencer for the United States Attorney’s Office after the Office of the Deputy Attorney General determined that United States Attorney John P. Fishwick Jr. should be recused from further involvement to preclude any conflict of interest or even the appearance of a conflict arising from an unrelated matter that United States Attorney Fishwick worked on prior to being appointed the United States Attorney. The General Counsel’s Office for the Executive Office for United States Attorneys and the Office of the Deputy Attorney General notified the United States Attorney’s Office of the recusal decision on July 12, 2016, after receiving United States Attorney Fishwick’s request for a review. Mr. Fishwick made the request on June 28, 2016, immediately after he became aware of facts arising from the unrelated matter and curtailed his further involvement with the office pertaining to the February incident. The Department of Justice determined that, to preclude any conflict of interest or even the appearance of a conflict, and pursuant to the United States Attorney’s Manual and the United States Attorneys’ Procedures, Mr. Fishwick should be recused from any further role in the Kionte Spencer matter.
