Fred Wyshak

Each year, NAFUSA recognizes an Assistant U.S. Attorney for outstanding performance through the J. Michael Bradford Memorial Award. The award is named after J. Michael Bradford, who served as a U.S. Attorney in the Eastern District of Texas from 1994 to 2001. Bradford, who died in 2003, had a distinguished career in public service, including successfully defending the government against lawsuits stemming from the 1993 siege of the Branch Davidian’s compound in Waco, Texas. NAFUSA annually solicits nominations from current U.S. Attorneys for the Bradford Award. Typically, the recipient has handled a significant investigation and prosecution or a series of prosecutions which has had a significant impact and merits special recognition.

Once again, a number of exceptional nominations were made by U.S. Attorneys around the country. The J. Michael Bradford Award Committee was chaired by NAFUSA Vice President Karen Hewitt. Its members included Bob Balfe, Shari Potter, Paul Coggins, Ron Machen, and John Brownlee.

This year, the NAFUSA Board of Directors voted to give the award to AUSA Fred M. Wyshak, Jr.  of the District of Massachusetts, nominated by U.S. Attorney Andrew E. Lelling. His nomination and selection was based upon Fred having  “quite literally- taken down the Boston mob.” Over the past 25 years, Wyshak has prosecuted Stephen “The Rifleman” Flemmi, a former mobster who killed dozens of people; James “Whitey” Bulger; and former mob boss Frank Salemme and his co-defendant Paul Weadick. In addition, in 2018 Fred was lead counsel in one of the most signficant criminal health care fraud trials in the country, the Insys Therapeutics case involving Subys, a dangerous opioid. Finally, Fred, as chief of the district’s Public Corruption Unit, supervised the prosecutions and convictions of eight Massachusetts State Trooper for fraudulently obtaining thousands of dollars for overtimes shifts they did not work.

Other nominees for the Bradford Award were:

Each of the nominees will receive recognition from NAFUSA for their exemplary service.