Rachel Rossi


Rachel Rossi is an American lawyer and politician. She has worked as a public defender in Los Angeles County, and as criminal justice counsel to Democratic Senator Dick Durbin.

Early life and education

Rossi grew up in the Inland Empire region of Southern California. She attended Claremont High School before earning her bachelor's degree from Bethany University and a Juris Doctor from the Pepperdine University School of Law.

Career

From 2011 to 2017, she was a state and federal public defender in Los Angeles County; she has said that defending clients who were generally low-income and minorities, many of whom had suffered homelessness, mental illness or drug abuse, gave her a good understanding of the legal system in Los Angeles.
She then became criminal justice counsel to Dick Durbin, the Democratic Party's Senate Democratic Whip, working on Supreme Court nominations including those of Neil Gorsuch and Brett Kavanaugh. She served as lead staffer on the 2018 First Step Act, which seeks to reduce recidivism and encourages federal prison reform, and has resulted in thousands of prisoners being released. She is Of Counsel to Cohen Williams LLP.
In November 2019, Rossi announced she was running as a reformist candidate for Los Angeles County District Attorney. Rossi will face incumbent Jackie Lacey and former San Francisco DA, George Gascón. During her campaign, she has criticized the Los Angeles legal system, pointing out that 80% of prisoners there are black or Latino, and one in three suffers from some form of mental illness.

Honors

In 2019 Rossi was recognized by the National Bar Association as one of the United States' top 40 lawyers aged under 40. She has been recognized as a Lawyer of Color during the Congressional Black Caucus Foundation conference.