Mark Kappelhoff

Mark Kappelhoff is chief of the Criminal Section of the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. In that position, Kappelhoff supervises and manages DOJ attorneys involved in the investigation and prosecution of federal criminal civil rights violations, including bias-motivated hate crimes, human trafficking and law enforcement misconduct. Prior to holding this position, Kappelhoff served as a deputy chief and trial attorney in the section. During his tenure at the DOJ, Kappelhoff has investigated and prosecuted several high-profile civil rights cases. Kappelhoff and the entire trial team were awarded the Attorney General’s Award for Exceptional Service, the second highest award in the department. Kappelhoff has also received the Director’s Award for Superior Performance. Kappelhoff has taught seminar courses as an adjunct professor at Georgetown University Law Center, the American University, Washington College of Law and the University of Maryland Law School. He served as a visiting assistant professor in American University’s nationally recognized Criminal Justice Clinical program. Kappelhoff received his Bachelor of Science degree in psychology from St. John’s University in Collegeville, Minn. He earned his J.D. degree from American University, Washington College of Law in Washington.