By Steve Neavling

The U.S. Senate on Tuesday confirmed President Biden’s nominee, Lisa Monaco, as deputy attorney general, the top two spot at the Justice Department. 

Monaco, 53, who served as assistant attorney general for national security and White House homeland security and counterterrorism adviser under President Obama, was confirmed in a 98-2 vote. 

Sens. Ted Cruz and Rand Paul voted against confirmation. 

Monaco was among Obama’s potential nominees for FBI director.

As deputy attorney general, Monaco will oversee the Justice Department’s operations and supervise the FBI and Bureau of Prisons. 

Monaco is known as a consensus-builder with experience on cyber issues. 

Biden’s pick for associate attorney general, Vanita Gupta, could be confirmed this week. 

By Steve Neavling

A former supervisory Border Patrol agent was sentenced to 15 years in prison on a child pornography charge. 

Jason Christopher Davis, of Las Cruses, pleaded guilty in October to producing a pornographic video of a 5-year-old child and uploading the video to his laptop.

Investigators found digital media with child pornography at his home, and he was arrested in May. 

He was a supervisory Border Patrol agent at the time. 

The case was prosecuted as part of Project Safe Childhood, a nationwide effort to combat sexual exploitation and abuse. 

The case was investigated by the Las Cruces Office of Homeland Security Investigations, the Office of Inspector General of the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and the Las Cruces Police Department. The Office of Professional Responsibility of Customs and Border Protection, the Border Patrol’s Management Inquiry Team, the FBI, and the New Mexico Attorney General’s Office assisted.