Jason Rogers Williams (born November 2, 1972) is an American politician and attorney who is the Orleans Parish district attorney; he assumed office in 2021. From 2014 to 2021, Williams served as the Second Division Councilmember-at-large on the

New Orleans City Council The New Orleans City Council is the legislative branch of the City of New Orleans, Louisiana, United States. The current mayor-council form of city government was created in 1954, following the 1950 amendment of the state constitution that provide ...

. He is a member of the

Democratic Party Democratic Party most often refers to: *Democratic Party (United States) Democratic Party and similar terms may also refer to: Active parties Africa *Botswana Democratic Party *Democratic Party of Equatorial Guinea *Gabonese Democratic Party *Demo ...

, and was elected district attorney on a progressive platform. Williams was charged with multiple counts of federal tax fraud. In 2022, he was acquitted of all charges.

Early life and education

Williams was born and spent his adolescence in

New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,New Orleans
Merriam-Webster. ; french: La Nouvelle-Orléans , es, Nuev ...

. He graduated from Woodward Academy, in

College Park, Georgia College Park is a city in Fulton County, Georgia, Fulton and Clayton County, Georgia, Clayton counties, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia, United States, adjacent to the southern boundary of the city of Atlanta. As of the 2020 United States Census, 20 ...

, and attended

Tulane University Tulane University, officially the Tulane University of Louisiana, is a private university, private research university in New Orleans, Louisiana. Founded as the Medical College of Louisiana in 1834 by seven young medical doctors, it turned into ...

on a football scholarship, where he was elected class president 4 times. Additionally, he attended

Tulane Law School Tulane University Law School is the law school of Tulane University. It is located on Tulane's Uptown campus in New Orleans New Orleans ( , ,Louisiana Supreme Court The Supreme Court of Louisiana (french: Cour suprême de Louisiane) is the highest court and court of last resort in the U.S. state of Louisiana. The modern Supreme Court, composed of seven justices, meets in the French Quarter of New Orlea ...

New Orleans City Council

Williams is a member of the

. He served as the At-large Division 2 member of the

from his swearing in on March 15, 2014 until his resignation on January 11, 2021, to assume his position as district attorney. The seat would remain vacant until January 28, 2021, when Donna Glapion was chosen to fill his seat. Williams served as president of the council.

District Attorney of New Orleans

In 2018, Williams announced he would be a candidate in the 2020 Orleans Parish district attorney election. Williams campaigned on massive reforms to the district attorney's office, which has been plagued with allegations of prosecutorial overreach. His campaign was characterized as progressive and part of a movement of progressive reforms in district attorney positions around the United States. His policies are in stark contrast to those of his predecessor, Leon Cannizzaro, who held a more traditional "tough on crime" approach as district attorney. Williams would go on to defeat his opponent Keva Landrum on the December 5th election and assumed office January 11, 2021. Following backlash from a sharp rise in 701 release cases and an increase in related crimes such as car jackings, public calls for Williams resignation have been made. As of February 10, 2022, Williams has not stepped down, but called a press conference to address “701 releases,” an article in State Criminal Court that gives defendants the right to a speedy trial. Williams criticized ''

Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization ''Dobbs v. Jackson Women's Health Organization'', , is a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the court held that the Constitution of the United States does not confer a right to abortion. The court's decision overruled both ''R ...

'', a ruling by the

U.S. Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) is the highest court in the federal judiciary of the United States. It has ultimate appellate jurisdiction over all U.S. federal court cases, and over state court cases that involve a point o ...

to overturn ''

Roe v. Wade ''Roe v. Wade'', 410 U.S. 113 (1973),. was a landmark decision of the U.S. Supreme Court in which the Court ruled that the Constitution of the United States conferred the right to have an abortion. The decision struck down many federal and st ...

''. He indicated his office would not prosecute abortion providers, instead, focusing on other crimes.

Tax fraud charges

In June 2020, during his campaign for district attorney, Williams was charged with 11 counts of federal tax fraud. Williams claimed he was innocent. His trial was set by U.S. District Court Judge Martin Feldman for January 2022, but it was delayed due to an appeal made to the

United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit (in case citations, 5th Cir.) is a federal court with appellate jurisdiction over the district courts in the following federal judicial districts: * Eastern District of Louisiana * M ...

. At trial in July 2022, a jury acquitted Williams of all charges.

Election history

Notes

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Williams, Jason 21st-century American politicians Living people Louisiana Democrats New Orleans City Council members Tulane University alumni Tulane University Law School alumni 1972 births