In Bloomberg Law, Renai Rodney Shares Insight Into Chicago US Attorney Selection

The White House is vetting two finalists for Chicago’s chief prosecutor who’d be historically diverse leaders at a critical juncture in combating public corruption and rising street crime punctuated by gun violence. The finalist will be the first non-White male leader in the Chicago US attorney’s office’s 165-year history.

Litigation & enforcement counsel Renai Rodney told Bloomberg Law that, for residents to see a diverse US attorney, “it may become less of an ‘us against them.’ It helps to know that roles like that are attainable, especially when it’s primarily communities of color who occupy the defendant space when you’re looking at violent crime, drug crime.”

The district’s front office features a hall of portraits of past US attorneys in Chicago that’s referred to in jest as the “wall of White men.” “It’s a daily reminder, whenever you’re in the front office, of who’s been running things,” said Renai.