The White House has nominated Adam Francis Sleeper to be the next U.S. Attorney for the Virgin Islands, replacing Delia L. Smith, who abruptly vacated the post April 15.
The nomination Tuesday would elevate Sleeper, who had been the acting U.S. Attorney since Smith’s departure, to be the top federal prosecutor in the territory.
Since joining the Virgin Islands U.S. Attorney’s Office, Sleeper has been attached to hundreds of cases — both older closed cases under review or appeal and new cases, many involving undocumented migrants and illicit drug charges, according to court records.
Sleeper did not respond to requests for comment on the nomination but a senior official at the U.S. Attorney’s Office said they had no comment. The position requires congressional approval.
U.S. attorneys are appointed by the president, while the attorney general is either elected by the people or appointed by the governor, as is the case in the USVI.
Sleeper is a career prosecutor with the United States Attorney’s Office. He has served as First Assistant U.S. Attorney and as Appellate Chief.
Sleeper received an undergraduate degree from Connecticut College and a law degree from Cornell Law School. Before joining the Justice Department, he clerked for Judge Curtis Gómez of the District Court of the Virgin Islands and Judge Joel Carson III of the United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit. He also worked as an associate in the Boston, Massachusetts office of an international law firm, the release stated.
