Florence T. Nakakuni (born 1952) is the former United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii. She was appointed in 2009 by

President President most commonly refers to: *President (corporate title) *President (education), a leader of a college or university *President (government title) President may also refer to: Automobiles * Nissan President, a 1966–2010 Japanese ful ...

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...

, replacing Edward H. Kubo Jr. who left to become a Judge on the Hawaii First Circuit Court. She is the first female United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii. As one of 93

U.S. Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal c ...

s nationwide, she represented the United States government in all civil and criminal cases within the

district A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

. Nakakuni is a career public servant. After graduating from the University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa and the

William S. Richardson School of Law The William S. Richardson School of Law is the professional graduate law school of the University of Hawaii at Manoa. Located in Honolulu, Hawaii, the school is named after its patriarch, former Hawaii State Supreme Court Chief Justice William S. ...

in 1975 and 1978 (respectively), she clerked for Justice Thomas Ogata of the Hawaii Supreme Court. She then worked as an attorney-adviser in the Office of Information and Privacy Appeals at the

United States Department of Justice The United States Department of Justice (DOJ), also known as the Justice Department, is a federal executive department of the United States government tasked with the enforcement of federal law and administration of justice in the United State ...

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After a few years, she returned to Hawaii, working first for the General Counsel of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

in Pearl Harbor, Hawaii, and then joining the United States Attorney for the District of Hawaii's Office in 1985. Just prior to her appointment as US Attorney, she served as Chief of the Organized Crime and Narcotics section of the Criminal Division. Nakakuni grew up in

Palolo, Hawaii Pālolo is the name of a valley, stream, and residential neighborhood in Honolulu, Hawaii, the United States. The area lies approximately four miles east and inland from downtown Honolulu, less than a mile from Diamond Head. Like many of Hawai ...

, and attended Kaimuki High School. She initially wanted to be a high school English teacher, but changed career paths after college. Even after law school, she never wanted to become a trial lawyer.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Nakakuni, Florence T. 1952 births Living people 21st-century American women University of Hawaiʻi at Mānoa alumni Hawaii lawyers United States Attorneys for the District of Hawaii American women lawyers People from Honolulu County, Hawaii William S. Richardson School of Law alumni

See also

References