Justice Dept. encourages prosecutions of corporate execs

WASHINGTON -- The Justice Department issued new guidance to its prosecutors Wednesday, aimed at encouraging more white-collar criminal cases against corporate executives.

The new policies come amid persistent criticism the Justice Department, even while negotiating multibillion-dollar settlements with large banks, has not been aggressive in prosecuting individuals for financial misconduct -- including after the mortgage crisis that devastated the U.S. economy.

The policy changes were outlined in a memo issued to Justice Department attorneys and to the FBI, and Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates was expected to discuss the issue in a speech today at New York University's law school.

Though it's not clear whether the new policies will result in additional prosecutions, they reflect concerns the department could be doing more to hold individual, high-level executives accountable.