How is US Attorney General Merrick Garland tied to Oklahoma City? What you need to know

Now the country's top law enforcement official and head of the Department of Justice, Merrick Garland has strong ties to Oklahoma City.

He played an important role in the aftermath of the April 19, 1995 bombing of the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building.

Here's what you need to know.

Merrick Garland's connection to Oklahoma City bombing

In the 1990s, Garland was working for the Clinton administration as Deputy Attorney General Jamie Gorelick's principal associate deputy attorney general.

In that role, Garland supervised several high-profile domestic terrorism cases, including the Oklahoma City bombing, "Unabomber" Ted Kaczynski, and the Atlanta Olympics bombings.

Garland arrived in Oklahoma City within 48 hours of the bombing and personally handled some of the early legal proceedings.

Later, he oversaw the prosecution efforts that led to Timothy McVeigh's 1997 conviction during a trial held in Denver.

How Merrick Garland remembers the Oklahoma City bombing

Garland gave the keynote speech at the 2021 remembrance ceremony for the 26th anniversary of the bombing. A Department of Justice spokesperson at the time said that "Oklahoma City holds a special place in the attorney generals' heart."

“Every year on this day, wherever I am, I reflect on the loss so many of you endured —  the loss you continue to endure,” Garland said in the speech.

In an oral history for the Oklahoma City National Memorial & Museum recorded in 2013, Garland spoke of how the local response to the tragedy moved him.

"Everybody really pulled together. And that was incredibly significant, and sort of gave you a warm feeling about our country being able to come together in crisis," he said in the interview.

Contributing: Brandy McDonnell, Josh Dulaney, Nolan Clay

This article originally appeared on Oklahoman: AG Merrick Garland tied to Oklahoma City bombing trial