There is a new U-S attorney serving as the top-ranking law enforcement official in the western half of Missouri. Tammy Dickinson has taken the oath of office to become the United States Attorney for the Western District of Missouri. Dickinson was nominated by President Obama in July and confirmed by unanimous consent of the U.S. Senate on Tuesday, January 1st.

Adminstering the oath of office late Monday was a native of Milan: U.S. District Court Judge Beth Phillips, the FORMER U.S. Attorney.

The Western District of Missouri includes our KTTN-KGOZ listening area plus Kansas City, St. Joseph, Columbia, Jefferson City, and Springfield. She oversees a staff of 127 employees, including 64 attorneys and 63 support personnel.

The office is responsible for prosecuting federal crimes including crimes related to terrorism, public corruption, child exploitation, firearms, and narcotics. The office also defends the United States in civil cases and collects debts owed to the United States.

Dickinson, a Kansas City native, has been a trial attorney during her legal career. She has been the Chief Trial Assistant for the Jackson County Prosecutor’s Office since 2002 after working as an assistant prosecutor in that office beginning in 1998.

Dickinson received her law degree in 1998 from the University of Missouri - Kansas City School of Law and her B.A. in 1989 from Webster University. She is a member of the Missouri Bar and Kansas City Metropolitan Bar Associations.