U.S. Attorney Hickton stepping down

David Hickton made fighting cyber criminals and reducing opioid overdose deaths two of his signature priorities during six years as U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania, a job he announced Monday he will leave by month's end.

“The opportunity to serve as a United States Attorney in this administration has been the professional privilege of a lifetime and the highlight of my career,” Hickton said in a news release about his plans to step down Nov. 28, six years after President Obama nominated him to be the region's top prosecutor.

Most U.S. Attorneys submit letters of resignation when a new administration takes office. Some stay in office until the president picks their replacement, while others resign to pursue other opportunities. Donald Trump is scheduled to be inaugurated as president Jan. 20.

Through his spokesperson, Hickton, 61, of Thornburg declined to comment on his plans or the timing of his resignation.

His second-in-command, First Assistant U.S. Attorney Soo Song, will be acting U.S. Attorney until the Senate confirms whoever president-elect Trump nominates to replace Hickton.

Song will become acting U.S. Attorney on Nov. 29. She has served in the Department of Justice since 1995 and is a graduate of Yale University and George Washington Law School.

One of Hickton's best assets has been his ability to bring people together, said several people who have worked with him.

Since he took office, Hickton regularly has convened a committee of about 40 to 50 police and community leaders to talk about police-community relations, said Esther Bush, president and CEO of the Urban League of Greater Pittsburgh. Hickton has been a leader and an agent for change because of his sincerity, she said.

“You can tell that he leads with his heart,” she said. “These things are really important to him. It's not just a job.”

Hickton created an atmosphere where all law enforcement agencies in the region worked together, said Eric Zahren, executive director of the Carnegie Hero Fund Commission and retired head of the Secret Service's Pittsburgh office.

“Dave's a tremendous guy, a great leader,” he said. “He really set the tone for everybody.”

While he became known nationwide for several initiatives, including the battle against opioid overdose deaths, “this area and the work here was always his focus,” Zahren said.

At a time when police-community relations bottomed out nationally, Hickton brought police and the community together to talk about their issues, said Brandi Fisher, founder and director of the Alliance for Police Accountability.

“He's been inclusive,” she said. “He's given people a place to speak.”

Other than a youth-police relations program operated by his office, however, the results have been disappointing, Fisher said.

“We had a lot of conversations but not a lot of action,” she said.

Many in Western Pennsylvania were working on the opioid problem before Hickton, but he brought them together and put the region on a path to developing a unified effort, said Dr. Neil A. Capretto, medical director for the Gateway Rehabilitation Center.

Under his leadership, the region has developed plans and was picked by the Drug Enforcement Administration for one of its pilot programs, he said.

“None of this happens without Dave Hickton,” Capretto said.

While many politicians have good intentions and say the right things, Hickton spent time talking with groups and addicts' families, he said.

“He put his heart and soul into this,” Capretto said. “I'm sad to lose his voice.”

Under Hickton's leadership, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Western District of Pennsylvania has been at the forefront of some of the Justice Department's key initiatives, Attorney General Loretta E. Lynch said.

“These include the indictment of five Chinese military hackers for committing cyber espionage, the dismantling of the Darkode hacking forum and the first human trafficking cases to be brought in the Western District of Pennsylvania,” she said.

“There is no doubt that the United States is a stronger and safer place because of David's many contributions,” Lynch said.

Hickton was arguably the most effective prosecutor in the country, said Matt LaVigna, interim president and CEO of the National Cyber-Forensics and Training Alliance and a retired Secret Service agent. In the cyber crime area, in particular, Hickton's office came up with some of the most important prosecutions, he said.

“He was right there at the top,” said LaVigna, who was head of the Secret Service's Pittsburgh office for much of Hickton's tenure. “It's a loss for Western Pennsylvania, that's for sure.”

Brian Bowling is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach him at 724-850-1218 or bbowling@tribweb.com.