Christopher J. Wilson

Christopher J. Wilson, an Oklahoma native, has been named the interim Chief Federal Prosecutor for the Eastern District of Oklahoma and is to replace the outgoing U.S. Attorney Brian J. Kuester by virtue of the Federal Vacancies Reform Act. Kuester is one of the 55 presidentially appointed U.S. Attorneys. They have recently been requested by Acting U.S. Attorney General Monty Wilkinson to step down to make way for the nomination and appointment of new U.S. Attorneys across the nation. Acting U.S. Attorney General Wilkinson had made the announcement on behalf of the United States Department of Justice on February 9, 2021. U.S. Attorney Kuester responded by submitting his letter of resignation on February 23, 2021. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Wilson will officially begin serving as the Acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma on March 1, 2021, until a permanent successor has been named by the Biden Administration.

 

Appointed State’s Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma

Lifelong Oklahoma resident and dedicated First Assistant United States Attorney Christopher J. Wilson has been named as the interim successor of the outgoing U.S. Attorney Brian J. Kuester. Christopher Wilson will take over in leading and representing the Office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma pursuant to the Federal Vacancies Reform Act, ensuing the departure of U.S. Attorney Kuester, who is listed among the 55 U.S. Attorneys appointed under the administration of former President Donald Trump that are currently being requested to step down and vacate their posts. The aforementioned request was delivered by Acting U.S. Attorney General Robert M. “Monty” Wilkinson on February 9, 2021, as a part of the transition process into the Biden Administration. United States Attorney Brian J. Kuester announced his resignation on February 23, 2021, effective February 28, 2021. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Wilson will officially serve as the Acting United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma on March 1, 2021. He shall continue to do so until President Joe Biden and the Senate have successfully appointed and confirmed a new United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

 

Educational Background

Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher Wilson is a 1982 graduate of the McAlester High School and has subsequently entered the Oklahoma Christian College from where he earned his Bachelor’s Degree in 1986. In 1989, U.S. Attorney Christopher Wilson received his Juris Doctorate from the University of Oklahoma College of Law and h¬ad then began his career in the legal field.

 

Legal Career – Assistant District Attorney & District Attorney

In 1991, the career of Acting U.S. Attorney Wilson as a prosecutor had begun to flourish as he joined the Office of the District Attorney for the Pittsburg County as an Assistant District Attorney. With approximately eight years of service as an Assistant District Attorney for the Pittsburg County, U.S. Attorney Chris Wilson has contributed significantly to the Office. He has demonstrated excellent skills in his line of work. As a law enforcement official representi¬ng the Oklahoma state government on behalf of the Pittsburg County District Attorney, Acting U.S. Attorney Wilson has worked on investigations and prosecutions of individuals who have been accused of committing a crime. Moreover, U.S. Attorney Wilson has served under two District Attorneys prior to being elected as the District Attorney. From January of 2003 to April of 2006, Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher Wilson had carried out his obligations and duties as the District Attorney for the 18th District. Throughout his tenure, U.S. Attorney Wilson has accomplished a significant number of his projects and more. A part of his campaign was the commitment to help merchants who are being victimized by bogus check writers, which was well-addressed during his 39-month term, wherein Acting U.S. Attorney Wilson was able to lead the Office in collecting more than $1 million in bogus checks, despite the double-digit reduction in state funding that his Office had faced at the time. Under his leadership as the District Attorney for the 18th Prosecutorial District of Oklahoma, the Office was further able to prosecute and obtain the first life sentence for a case of manufacturing methamphetamine in the history of Pittsburg County. It was also able to host the first Victims’ Rights Day and develop and foster the first District Attorney Supervision Program, which had the responsibility of ensuring that offenders indeed comply with court-ordered sentencing conditions. On top of that, Acting U.S. Attorney Chris Wilson noted that he is incredibly proud of pursuing the prosecution of criminal cases occurring within the state prisons in Pittsburg County. His office was able to crack down drug offenders by seeking asset seizures and forfeitures and securing forfeitures of over $310 000 in cash, 14 vehicles, and 220 weapons.

In between his service as an Assistant District Attorney and as a District Attorney for the 18th Prosecutorial District of Oklahoma, U.S. Attorney Christopher Wilson served a short stint in private practice from 2000 to 2002, preceding his victory during the 2002 District Attorney’s race. In January of 2006, U.S. Attorney Wilson announced his resignation from being the District Attorney for Pittsburg and Haskell. He had been appointed to serve in the United States Department of Justice beginning July of the same year.

 

Legal Career – U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma

Former U.S. Attorney Sheldon J. “Shelly” Sperling, the man who recruited now Acting U.S. Attorney Wilson, had then noted that U.S. Attorney Wilson had to undergo a thorough process involving a national recruiting campaign, along with detailed interviews and exhaustive reference checking, in order to be a part of the Office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. Former U.S. Attorney Sperling also acclaimed U.S. Attorney Wilson for being remarkably talented, having a great extent of experience in the legal field, and having integrity and honesty beyond approach. Sperling further expressed his admiration for U.S. Attorney Wilson, emphasizing his deep knowledge and understanding of the changing nature of methamphetamine-related cases, which shall be crucial in the government’s primary violent crime initiative – the Project Safe Neighborhoods.

 

Statements from Former U.S. Attorney Sperling

“We expect great things from him. Wilson was chosen after a national recruiting campaign, detailed interviews, and ‘exhaustive reference checking,'” said former U.S. Attorney Sperling. “Chris Wilson is a remarkably talented, highly experienced, and discerning law enforcement advocate. I am really excited about the prospect of his engagement on our team,” he further added. Also, according to Sperling, Wilson is an “Icon of character, work ethic and service. His integrity and honesty are beyond reproach. He has a profound respect for a commitment to the criminal justice system.”

Moreover, former U.S. Attorney Sperling acknowledged the excellent work that U.S. Attorney Wilson does in terms of prosecuting crimes involved with methamphetamine, stating:

“He will be a key prosecutor in our primary violent crime initiative known as Project Safe Neighborhoods.”

After working for approximately 13 years in the Office of the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Oklahoma as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Chris Wilson was named the First Assistant U.S. Attorney to former Brian J. Kuester in February of 2019. Apart from being second-in-command in the Office, U.S. Attorney Wilson has handled a wide variety of criminal matters and held several other leadership roles. Acting U.S. Attorney Wilson is, indeed, an invaluable asset in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma. He has served in the Office as the Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council Coordinator (ATAC) – coordinating terrorism prosecutorial and investigative strategies; the Computer Hacking and Intellectual Property Coordinator (CHIP) – aggressively prosecuting computer crime and IP offenses; the Crisis Management Coordinator (CMC) – developing a critical incident response plan; the District Security Manager (DOSM) – managing all district security programs; the Elder Justice Coordinator (EJC) – affirmatively pursuing cases of financial fraud, neglect, and exploitation of older adults; the National Security Cyber Specialist (NSCS) – focusing on cyber threats to the national security; and as the Project Safe Childhood Coordinator (PSC) – delivering multiple internet safety presentations to schools within the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

 

Awards

Acting U.S Attorney Christopher Wilson is a federal prosecutor with broad knowledge and extensive practical skills in prosecuting criminal matters, particularly child exploitation, firearms, narcotics, public corruption, terrorism, violent crime, and white-collar crimes. In 2018, he became a recipient of the Executive Office of the United States Attorney’s District’s Award for Superior Performance in Indian Country.

 

Office Jurisdiction

Presently, the interim Chief Federal Law Enforcement Official of the Eastern District of Oklahoma, Acting U.S. Attorney Christopher J. Wilson, is responsible for leading and overseeing the Office, especially in enforcing the law and defending the United States’ interests. Furthermore, he is in charge of ensuring public safety against foreign and domestic threats and preventing and controlling crime. The United States Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of Oklahoma has jurisdiction over 26 counties, namely, Adair, Atoka, Bryan, Carter, Cherokee, Choctaw, Coal, Haskell, Hughes, Johnston, Latimer, Le Flore, Love, Marshall, McCurtain, McIntosh, Murray, Muskogee, Okfuskee, Okmulgee, Pittsburg, Pontotoc, Pushmataha, Seminole, Sequoyah, and Wagoner.

Contact Details

Full Name: Christopher J. Wilson
District/State: Eastern District of Oklahoma
Public email ID: N/A

Muskogee Branch Office

United States Attorney’s Office
520 Denison Ave
Muskogee OK 74401

(918) 684-5100
Main
(918) 684-5130

Administrative / Civil Division Fax

(918) 684-5150

ATAC / Criminal / Executive / Law Enforcement / Victim & Witness

(800) 659-7913
Toll-Free

Main Phone Extensions for the Different Divisions

Ext 5132
Administrative Division

Ext 5175
Anti-Terrorism Advisory Council (ATAC)

Ext 5116
Civil Division

Ext 5154
Criminal Division

Ext 5175
Executive Division

Ext 5145
Law Enforcement / LECC

Ext 5157
Project Safe Childhood

Ext 5164
Project Safe Neighborhood

Ext 5169
Victim & Witness Assistance

 

Social Media Profiles of Christopher Wilson

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Twitter
Username: U.S. Attorney EDOK
Tag: @USAO_EDOK
URL: https://twitter.com/USAO_EDOK

 

Updated: June 16, 2021