DOJ Taps Former US Attorney to Replace Veteran as Top Diplomat

The Justice Department has selected Hayden O’Byrne, a former Miami Federalist Society president who was South Florida’s US attorney earlier this year, to oversee its expansive international portfolio.

He fills a critical criminal division deputy vacancy that was created when the Trump administration removed renowned career official Bruce Swartz shortly after inauguration. Federal prosecutors had leaned on Swartz’s diplomatic connections to help secure witness extraditions and evidence from abroad for the past three decades.

O’Byrne told colleagues he’s flying to Washington on Tuesday to begin an assignment as the deputy assistant attorney general coordinating international issues, according to an email ...