NDAA Women Prosecutors Section Honors International Women's History Month: There Is Still More Work to Do.

• Author: Prior, Tracy M.

March was Women's History Month. Since 1995, United States presidents have issued yearly proclamations celebrating the contributions women have made our country and recognizing the specific achievements women have made over the course of American History. NDAA continues to champion its women prosecutors and on March 8, hosted a webinar on International Women's History Day, titled, Breaking Barriers as a Female Prosecutor and Modeling for Future Generations. The webinar traced the history of female prosecutors in America and featured a panel discussion about challenges and opportunities for continued emphasis on diversity, equity and inclusion. The webinar was hosted by NDAA's Women Prosecutors section, a group established in 2015.

The purpose of the NDAA Women Prosecutors Section is to:

* Develop a network of NDAA members committed to leadership, mentorship, and friendship by women prosecutors.

* Provide education and promote increased opportunities for women seeking leadership positions within prosecution offices.

* Assist NDAA in public engagement and education on issues of particular importance to women prosecutors.

My dad was a high school history teacher and always told me, "Everything must be put in its proper historical context"--so here is a history lesson on female prosecutors and the genesis of the NDAA Women Prosecutors Section.

THE FIRST FEMALE PROSECUTOR IN AMERICA--CLARA SHORTRIDGE FOLTZ

Clara Shortridge Foltz was born in 1849 and moved to California in 1872. After her husband deserted her and their five children, Clara began studying law in the office of a local judge and supported herself by giving public lectures on suffrage starting in 1877. She wanted to take the California bar examination but at the time, California law only allowed white males to become members of the liar. Foltz authored a state bill that replaced "white male" with "person" and in September 1878, she passed the bar and was the first woman admitted to the California Bar.

To improve her skills, Foltz wanted to study at Hastings College of Law but was denied admission because she was a woman. Foltz sued and won. She later practiced in San Francisco, San Diego, and in 1910, was appointed to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office, becoming in the first female deputy district attorney in the U.S. Foltz raised five children, mostly as a single mother, and encouraged women not to overlook their traditional domestic roles.

25 years later, in 1935, Eunice Carter became the first black woman assistant district attorney in the state of New York and first prosecutor in the nation. Eunice was born in 1899 to two college educated parents--her mom Addie was a social worker, and dad Alphaeus, a founder of the black division of the YMCA. Her paternal grandfather purchased his freedom from slavery before the Civil war. Eunice graduated from Smith College in Massachusetts, got her MSW, and decided to study law. 1932, became first black woman to receive a law degree from Fordham University in New York, and after passing the bar, established a career in both law and international politics. As Assistant DA in New York, she determined that Mafia boss Lucky Luciano must be involved in prostitution rings. She put together a massive prostitution racketeering case that implicated Luciano and...