PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — Philadelphia could be getting its first female U.S. attorney.
President Biden has nominated Jacqueline Romero to become the chief federal prosecutor for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania.
Romero has been an assistant U.S. attorney in Philadelphia for 16 years. She is currently civil rights coordinator and a member of the Regional Medicare Fraud Strike Force.
Romero is slated to replace Bill McSwain, who resigned when Biden took office. Jennifer Arbittier Williams has been serving in an interim role.
Related
Romero drew praise from both of Pennsylvania’s senators.
Democrat Bob Casey noted her breadth of experience. Republican Pat Toomey called her “well suited to lead the office.”
Romero graduated from the College of New Jersey and Rutgers Law. She is a past president of the Hispanic Bar Association of Pennsylvania, board member with the LGBTQ Bar Association of Philadelphia, and a former adjunct professor at Temple.
Biden also nominated Gerard Karam for the Middle District of Pennsylvania. He is currently a partner in a private firm that specializes in complex litigation.
The U.S. Senate must confirm both nominees before they can serve.
Related
The following is a full statement from Pennsylvania Attorney General Josh Shapiro about the choices of Romero and Karam for U.S. attorney:
“We are glad the administration has announced nominations for U.S. Attorneys to serve as our federal law enforcement partners in the Middle and Eastern Districts of Pennsylvania. There is so much to be done to protect our communities, and we look forward to continuing our office’s deep collaboration with U.S. Attorney Romero and U.S. Attorney Karam.
U.S. Attorney Romero will have unique capabilities to combat the gun violence tearing through our neighborhoods, and we look forward to her office prioritizing the revitalization of the Project Safe Neighborhoods Task Force, an evidence-based program that coordinates federal, state and local law enforcement resources to focus on strategies to combat violent offenders causing the most harm in our communities. We also hope that under her leadership the office works closely with all of its local, state, and federal law enforcement partners to increase its prosecution of serious violent crime cases in Philadelphia.
Our office also looks forward to continuing our work with the U.S. Attorney’s Office and local District Attorneys through the SAUSA (Special Assistant United States Attorney) program, which provides invaluable resources to our operation in order to protect the public.”
For more from KYW Newsradio:
- Download the Audacy App
- Listen live
- Listen on your smart speaker