Peter Neronha

Peter Neronha
United States Attorney for the District of Rhode Island
In office
September 16, 2009 – March 10, 2017
President Barack Obama
Donald Trump
Preceded by Robert Clark Corrente
Succeeded by Stephen Dambruch (Acting)
Personal details
Born (1963-12-17) December 17, 1963
Political party Democratic
Education Boston College (BA, JD)
Website Official website

Peter F. Neronha (born December 17, 1963) is an American lawyer and politician from Jamestown, Rhode Island who served as the United States Attorney for the District of Rhode Island under President Barack Obama from September 16, 2009 until March 10, 2017. He is currently running as a Democrat for the office of Attorney General of Rhode Island in the 2018 elections.[1][2]

Early life, education, and career

Neronha was a graduate of North Kingstown High School Class of 1981, a summa cum laude graduate of Boston College (1985) and a graduate of Boston College Law School (1989), where he was a member of the Boston College Law Review.

Following his graduation from law school, Neronha joined the Boston, Massachusetts law firm, Goodwin, Procter LLP, where he practiced commercial litigation for nearly seven years. His public service career began with his appointment as a state prosecutor in the Rhode Island Attorney General's Office in 1996. In 2002, Neronha became a federal prosecutor, joining the Rhode Island United States Attorney's Office. In 2009, on the recommendation of United States Senators Jack Reed and Sheldon Whitehouse, President Barack Obama appointed Neronha to serve as the United States Attorney for the District of Rhode Island. Neronha's appointment was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on September 16, 2009.

United States Attorney (2009–2017)

While serving as United States Attorney, Neronha served two terms on the Attorney General's Advisory Committee, a group of sixteen United States Attorneys from across the country that advised the Attorney General of the United States on policy and operational matters affecting the Department of Justice nationwide. He also Co-Chaired the Operations, Management and Budget (OMB) Subcommittee, responsible for reviewing and making recommendations concerning the approximately 2 billion-dollar budget for the entire United States Attorney component of the Department of Justice.

During his nearly eight years as United States Attorney, Neronha made public corruption the top priority of the United States Attorney's Office. Under his direction, the Office prosecuted numerous cases against state and local elected officials, including a city mayor, three town councilmen, a state senator, a state representative, a House of Representatives Finance Chairman and a House Speaker, all of whom were sentenced to federal prison.[3][4]

As United States Attorney, Neronha also prioritized combatting the state's opioid crisis, combining prosecution of major, cartel-linked drug trafficking organizations with prevention initiatives.[5] [6] He spoke personally to over 10,000 students at high schools and moderated panels at town halls across the state. He also advocated for a "smart" approach to reducing violent crime by focusing law enforcement resources on those individuals driving violent crime, while working in the community on crime prevention and to help secure employment for people leaving prison. He also prioritized the work of the Office's Civil Division, bringing cases to protect consumers, safeguard public money from waste and abuse, and protect the environment.

Additionally, as United States Attorney, Neronha led an investigation of Google regarding its business practice of assisting off-shore pharmacies unlawfully importing controlled substances, including opioids, into the United States. As a result of that investigation, Google forfeited 500 million dollars, one of the five largest forfeitures in U.S. history, of which 230 million dollars were returned to Rhode Island.[7]

Neronha was one of the U.S. attorneys who was asked to resigned by Attorney General Jeff Sessions in the 2017 dismissal of U.S. attorneys.

Attorney General of Rhode Island

In October 2017, Neronha announced that he would seek the Democratic nomination for the office of Attorney General of Rhode Island. The previous Attorney General, Peter Kilmartin was termed limited.[8] Neronha is the only Democrat running for the office. He will be running against independent candidate Charles Picerno and Compassion Party candidate Alan Gordon.[9][10]

Neronha has received the endorsement of the Jamestown Democratic Party.[11]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "Peter Neronha". Peter Neronha for Attorney General. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  2. ↑ White, Tim (October 3, 2017). "Former US Attorney Neronha announces run for RI attorney general". WPRI. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  3. ↑ Mulvaney, Katie. "Rhode Island's U.S. Attorney Neronha ousted by U.S. Attorney General Jeff Sessions". providencejournal.com. The Providence Journal. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  4. ↑ News, AP. "Ex-Rhode Island Speaker Fox pleads guilty to federal charges". Townhall. Associated Press. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  5. ↑ "11 charged in RI heroin trafficking ring". ABC6. ABC6 News. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  6. ↑ "CVS Health to pay government $450,000 to settle dispute". Valdosta Daily Times. Associated Press. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  7. ↑ Crimaldi, Laura. "RI to get $230M from $500M Google forfeiture". phys.org. Associated Press. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  8. ↑ White, Tim (October 3, 2017). "Former US Attorney Neronha announces run for RI attorney general". WPRI. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  9. ↑ Gregg, Katherine; Anderson, Patrick. "R.I.'s slate set in state, federal races". providencejournal.com. The Providence Journal. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  10. ↑ "Candidates for Attorney General". ri.gov. Rhode Island Secretary of State. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
  11. ↑ "Town Dems endorse congressional incumbents, also back Raimondo | www.jamestownpress.com | Jamestown Press". jamestownpress.com. The Jamestown Press. Retrieved July 20, 2018.
Preceded by
Robert Clark Corrente		 U.S. Attorney for Rhode Island
2009–2017		 Succeeded by
Stephen G. Dambruch (Acting)
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