Rachael Rollins Sworn in as US Attorney for Massachusetts, Becoming First Black Woman to Lead in This Role

Rachael Rollins, the former Suffolk County district attorney, was sworn in as the next United States Attorney for Massachusetts, becoming the first Black woman to be the top federal prosecutor in the state, according to WCVB.

Rollins was nominated by President Joe Biden in July 2021 and the U.S. Senate barely confirmed her to be the next U.S. attorney in Massachusetts a month ago. Vice President Kamala Harris cast the deciding vote in favor of Rollins.

From MassLive.com:

“I’m deeply honored and humbled by the opportunity to serve my community, my commonwealth and my country as the next United States Attorney for the District of Massachusetts,” Rollins said in a statement at the time. “Every policy and initiative that I have put in place as Suffolk County District Attorney has been designed to improve the safety and wellbeing of the communities I serve, to improve the public’s trust in law enforcement and our courts and to improve the fairness and equity of the criminal legal system. I’m incredibly proud of the work every member of my office has done to achieve these goals, and I’m grateful to have had the opportunity to lead an office of such dedicated, compassionate and talented professionals.”

Not everyone was happy with Rollins being nominated, especially from the conservative side of the senate.

Republican senators Tom Cotton of Arkansas and Ted Cruz of Texas referred to Rollins as “extreme,” “pro-crime,” “radical” and “revolutionary,” according to MassLive.

Not sure being a revolutionary is necessarily a bad thing.

As district attorney in Suffolk County, she advocated for criminal justice reforms, justifying that people should not go to jail for crimes that result from mental health or addiction and said that she should focus on “serious” crimes like homicides, according to WCVB.

The day of Rollins being sworn in, she also tweeted a photo of her family wishing her father a happy birthday saying, “your present is waiting at the Moakley Courthouse.”