After the sudden resignation of Duane “Dak” Kees on Jan. 17, who previously served as the acting head federal prosecutor and U.S. Attorney for the Western District of Arkansas, an interim for the area that includes courthouses from El Dorado to Texarkana to Fort Smith has now been named.
David Clay Fowlkes, who previously served as the first assistant United States attorney in the Western District and supervised its criminal and civil divisions has taken over Kees’ previous duties. Fowlkes was an assistant U.S. attorney since December 2007.
During his time in the United States Attorney’s office (USAO), Fowlkes also previously served as the coordinator for the Organized Crime and Drug Enforcement Task Force (OCDETF) Unit of the USAO, and has prosecuted a variety of criminal cases. He has also held the positions of criminal chief and senior litigation counsel.
Fowlkes received the Executive Office of the United States Attorney Director’s Award for Outstanding Litigation Team in 2011 after being recognized for his work on the case U.S. v. Bernie Hoffman, aka the Tony Alamo jury trial, and the Executive Office of the United States Attorney Director’s Award for Outstanding Performance by an Assistant United States Attorney in the Criminal Division in 2014 (Recognized for his work on the “Operation Great Scott” and “Operation Pantera Negra” OCDETF cases).
Prior to coming to the USAO, Fowlkes was a deputy prosecuting attorney for Benton County, Arkansas, from September 2003 to December 2007. Born in Harrison, Arkansas, Fowlkes is a graduate of Arkansas State University and University of Arkansas School of Law.