Boston University School of Law

October 30, 2009

A woman’s place is in the house — and Senate: Martha Coakley (‘79) pursues Kennedy’s seat

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Alumna and Massachusetts Attorney General Martha Coakley ('79) is in the lead for the late Ted Kennedy's senate seat, say many polls. Coakley ('79) is the state's first female elected attorney general, and if elected, she would be the first elected to the U.S. Senate in Massachusetts.

Coakley has been campaigning hard for the position, but then again, she's always been a hard worker.

Coakley, a Western Mass. native who now lives in Medford with her husband, Thomas F. O'Connor Jr., a retired deputy police superintendent, said her first job at 16 was scooping ice cream at a now-defunct Howard Johnson's in Williamstown. Coakley was on the debate team in high school, and she graduated No. 10 in her class in 1971. She graduated from Williams College in Williamstown and honed her communication skills on BU Law's national moot court team, winning best oralist twice in competitions. She was the student speaker at her BU Law graduation ceremony. "I was a big fan, and still am to some extent, of musicals, and I made an analogy to Eliza Doolittle in My Fair Lady," Coakley told Bostonia magazine. "I talked about the need for us as lawyers to not just sound good, but to use our skills for something that mattered and something we cared about."

After law school, she worked in Boston as an associate at the law firms of Parker, Coulter, Daley & White, and Goodwin Procter. In 1986 she joined the DA's office as an assistant district attorney in the Lowell, Massachusetts District Court office. A year later, she was invited by the U.S. Justice Department to join its Boston Organized Crime Strike Force as a special attorney. Coakley returned to the District Attorney's Office in 1989 and was appointed the chief of the Child Abuse Prosecution Unit two years later.

She is the former president of the Massachusetts District Attorney's Association and former president of the Women's Bar Association of Massachusetts. She also serves as the chairman of the Board of Directors of Middlesex Partnerships for Youth, Inc.

Coakley has been involved in a number of high-profile cases. She told a reporter at Bostonia that she can still tick off the details of the infamous 1997 British au pair shaken-baby case as if it were tried a week ago. She was on the prosecutor team in a trial against an au pair accused of fracturing the skull of an eight-month-old Newton boy. For Coakley, then senior trial counsel in the Middlesex County district attorney's office, there was no question: Louise Woodward, 18, had shaken the baby to death.

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Coakley honored at 2009 Distinguished Alumni Awards Ceremony
Photo by Kalman Zabarsky

As AG, she's taken on other controversial cases, such as mortgage fraud and the Big Dig; she’s locked up sexual predators, prosecuted abusive nursing home operators, cracked down on health insurers and pharmaceutical companies, and went after utilities for unfair rate increases. As part of her Cyber Crime Initiative, Coakley updated the tools available to prosecutors for fighting crime. She helped put in place stronger protections against identity theft and child sexual assault. She collaborated with the Legislature in the passage of the recent ethics reform legislation and provided her office's legal expertise to the Legislature to pass the Health Care Cost Containment bill and the Green Communities Act.

When the Senate seat became vacant following the death of Senator Edward M. Kennedy, Coakley immediately knew what she had to do. At a news conference, she said the state has had a "crisis of confidence" following Kennedy's death and she wanted to pick up his mantle.

"As some have noted, no one can fill his shoes, but we must strive to follow in his footsteps," she told supporters at a downtown Boston hotel. She's holding a comfortable lead in the race so far. The primary for Kennedy's unexpired term is December 8, and the state election is January 19.

She’d be the first woman senator for Massachusetts. When asked what being a woman would bring to the seat, she responded, “As the first female Middlesex County District Attorney and the first female Massachusetts Attorney General, I can say that diversity of any kind in public life adds necessary perspective. There are currently only 17 female U.S. Senators in a body of 100 members – clearly, that does not accurately reflect the American populace. That said, my gender should not be the singular reason someone votes for me. I hope that voters look at my accomplishments as Attorney General and see how that experience translates to being an effective U.S. Senator.”

In a recent debate for the seat, Coakley pledged to take on the tough fights and get results. At the first U.S. Senate debate hosted by the John F. Kennedy Library, and sponsored by the Edward M. Kennedy Institute for the U.S. Senate, Coakley articulated a strong record of accomplishment and promised to take the fight to Washington in January.

"People want a different kind of leader in their United States Senator. They want someone who won't be afraid to stand up for people, take on the tough fights, and get things done," said Coakley to the crowd.

Her senate platform includes pushing for health insurance reform, getting broader regulation of the financial services industry, and linking Afghanistan troop escalation to President Obama’s setting clear goals and giving troops needed resources. Coakley has said she was the only attorney general to challenge the federal Defense of Marriage Act. She said she wants to continue Kennedy's "fighting spirit" in the legislative process.

According to Coakley's Web site, 88 state legislators and dozens of state union leaders have endorsed her so far. "Martha is an effective and courageous advocate for the Commonwealth, standing up for all of us to ensure our rights are protected and that all of our voices are heard," said Massachusetts Senate President Therese Murray. "I am confident that she will bring that courage and determination to Capitol Hill and continue her record of strong leadership in the United States Senate."

Over the years, Coakley has remained connected to BU Law. She has taught at BU Law as an adjunct, delivered the 2007 commencement speech, and recently squeezed in time spent campaigning to be rewarded with a Distinguished Alumni award as part of Alumni Weekend.

Several BU Law alums are helping her campaign, including Brooke Sugaski (’02), Christiaan Highsmith (’08), Julie Babayan (’09), Stephany Collamore (’09) and Puja Mehta (’09). Many current BU Law students are also helping out, including Khadijah Britton, Kimberly Parr, Eric Lee and Kellyanne Parry.

She said her BU Law experience “provided me with a world-class legal education that serves as the academic foundation for my career in law and public service. BU Law well-prepared me for the professional challenges I have faced over the last three decades.”

For more stories on Martha Coakley and the senate race, see:


Reported by Sandi Miller

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