Historical Overview
The first United States Attorney's Office in Miami opened in 1929, and was located at 100 N.E. 1st Avenue. In 1932, the Office moved into the U.S. Courthouse, 300 N.E. 1st Avenue, where one federal judge, the Honorable John W. Holland (former United States Attorney), presided. The Office remained very small until after World War II. In 1952, there were two part-time AUSAs and three support staff. Since 1993, the primary office for the Southern District has been located at 99 N.E. 4th Street in Miami. The United States Attorney's Office for the Southern District of Florida has three other staffed offices: Fort Lauderdale, which opened in 1975; West Palm Beach, which opened in 1978; and Ft. Pierce, which opened in 1990. The United States Attorney also has a presence in Key West, where numerous cases are tried.
Over the years, the District has experienced a high rate of growth in AUSA personnel: from 9 AUSAs in 1965 to more than 220 today. There are 26 U.S. District Court Judges and 17 U.S. Magistrate Judges that preside over federal matters in the Southern District.
The State of Florida is the fourth most populous state in the country, and is divided into three federal judicial districts: Southern, Middle and Northern. The Southern District of Florida comprises 15,197 square miles and extends along more than 300 miles of coastline from Key West in the South to Vero Beach in the North. The District has more than six million people and covers nine separate counties: Monroe, Miami-Dade, Broward, Palm Beach, Martin, St. Lucie, Indian River, Okeechobee, and Highlands.
The Southern District is home to a number of federal enclaves, including the Homestead Air Reserve Base, the Miccosukee Indian Reservation, the Everglades National Park, and the U.S. Southern Command, Department of Defense.
In addition to more than twenty federal law enforcement agencies, there are approximately 120 state and local police agencies within the Southern District of Florida.