U.S. Attorney’s Office in Chicago Announces Individual Self-Disclosure Pilot Program

CHICAGO - The U.S. Attorney's Office in Chicago today announced the formation of a pilot program that encourages early and voluntary self-disclosure of criminal conduct by individual participants in certain non-violent offenses.

The six-month pilot program is geared toward individuals who have participated in and have knowledge of criminal wrongdoing by virtue of their employment. The purpose of the program is to encourage and incentivize individuals to self-report wrongdoing that was previously unknown to law enforcement, without fear of criminal prosecution for doing so. The benefit for those who make timely and meaningful disclosures is a non-prosecution agreement in exchange for their ongoing assistance. Depending on the success of the pilot program, the Office will determine whether to extend it on a more permanent basis.

"We are implementing this pilot program to provide a roadmap for how to report individual and organizational misconduct," said Morris Pasqual, Acting United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois. "We hope the program will enhance our effectiveness by incentivizing individuals and their counsel to provide us with actionable and timely information."

From today through March 15, 2025, the Office will accept submissions on a pre-printed form that should be emailed to [email protected]. Each submission will be reviewed by a working group of Assistant U.S. Attorneys. Anonymous reporting is not allowed, and individuals who have already been informed they are a subject or target of a federal criminal investigation will not be eligible. The reporting individual must agree to forfeit or disgorge any proceeds from their own criminal wrongdoing and pay full restitution to victims.

The program is not available to individuals whose misconduct involved violence, the threat of violence, terrorism, or any sex offense involving the force, fraud, or coercion of a minor. Additionally, elected federal or foreign officials, federal law enforcement officers, and individuals who are the highest-ranking person in their organization are not eligible to participate in the program. Click here for a full list of terms and conditions.