Prince George’s County Circuit Court Administrative Judge Sheila R. Tillerson Adams (right) administers the oath of office to State’s Attorney Aisha N. Braveboy. Photo by Bruce DePuyt.
Seeking to reduce the number of young people who go off course early in life jeopardizing their chances for success as adults, Prince George’s County’s new prosecutor is pledging to make juvenile justice reform a top priority.
State’s Attorney Aisha N. Braveboy (D) said she wants to make the county “an international model for youth justice reform … through meaningful diversion, intervention and restorative justice.”
Braveboy, a former state delegate, succeeds Angela Alsobrooks (D), who became county executive in December.
Braveboy laid out her agenda moments after taking the oath of office, in a courtroom packed with judges, co-workers, family members and supporters.
In addition to reforming the county’s system for adjudicating youthful offenders, Braveboy also wants to trace illegal guns back to their source and crack down on corruption.
“We will do this by flagging every case where a gun is used and determining whether the defendant was in lawful possession of the firearm,” she said. If the gun was illegal, “we will work to determine the source” of the weapon.
Braveboy said she has created a “stand-alone public integrity unit that will handle police misconduct cases and public corruption.”
“My office will have a zero tolerance policy for these types of cases,” she said, to applause.
Former two-term executive Jack B. Johnson — himself a former state’s attorney — was convicted of wrongdoing at the end of his tenure in Upper Marlboro. He is one of many political and law enforcement officials in Prince George’s County to have violated the public trust.
Braveboy has been serving on an interim basis since early December, when Alsobrooks was sworn in as county executive.
Among those attending Braveboy’s investiture were Sen. Chris Van Hollen (D-Md.), former federal judge Alex Williams, former Maryland attorney general Doug Gansler, former Prince George’s County executive Rushern L. Baker III and several members of the county’s delegation to Annapolis.
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