What does a District Attorney do?
A District Attorney is the county's chief prosecutor. The office decides which criminal cases are brought, what charges are filed, what bail or release conditions to request, whether a case belongs in a treatment program instead of a courtroom, and what sentence to recommend if there is a conviction. Almost none of that is dictated by statute — it is discretion, exercised thousands of times a year by the elected DA and the assistant district attorneys who work for them.
Charging and trial
Reviewing police work, filing charges the evidence supports, and trying cases in court.
Protecting victims
Standing with survivors of violence, abuse, and exploitation through the entire case.
Setting policy
Bail requests, diversion eligibility, and which offenses get priority attention.
Community trust
Working with neighborhoods, schools, and service providers to prevent crime before it happens.
What is the Suffolk County District Attorney's office?
Suffolk County covers four communities — Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop — and roughly 800,000 residents. It is the busiest prosecution district in Massachusetts, with assistant district attorneys appearing daily in Suffolk Superior Court, the Boston Municipal Court departments, the Chelsea and East Boston divisions, and juvenile sessions.
The office is organized into units that specialize in the cases that most affect daily life: homicide and gang violence, domestic violence and sexual assault, child protection, elder and disabled persons abuse, guns and trafficking, and appeals. It also employs victim-witness advocates whose job is to guide survivors through a process that can otherwise feel impossible to navigate.
Why it matters: the DA is the single official with the most day-to-day influence over whether Suffolk County residents feel safe, whether victims are heard, and whether people accused of low-level offenses get help or a permanent record.
How a criminal case moves through the system
Most people encounter the justice system with no idea what happens next. Here is the path a typical Suffolk County case follows.
- 1
Arrest or complaint
Police make an arrest or apply for a criminal complaint. The DA's office reviews the facts and decides whether charges are supported by the evidence.
- 2
Arraignment
The defendant appears in a Suffolk County district or superior court, hears the charges, and conditions of release — including bail — are set.
- 3
Pretrial and discovery
Prosecutors and defense counsel exchange evidence. Many cases resolve here through dismissal, diversion, or a negotiated plea.
- 4
Trial
If the case is not resolved, an assistant district attorney tries it before a judge or jury and must prove guilt beyond a reasonable doubt.
- 5
Sentencing and after
A judge imposes a sentence. Victims may submit impact statements, and the office handles appeals, probation issues, and post-conviction review.
Your rights as a victim or witness
Massachusetts law gives crime victims specific, enforceable rights. If you are a victim or a witness in a Suffolk County case, you are entitled to:
- To be treated with courtesy, sensitivity, and respect at every stage of the case
- To be notified of court dates, plea negotiations, and the final disposition
- To be present at court proceedings and to confer with the prosecutor
- To submit a victim impact statement before sentencing
- To request restitution for financial losses caused by the crime
- To receive help from a victim-witness advocate at no cost
For local support services and know-your-rights guides, see our Suffolk County resources page.
Diversion, treatment, and second chances
Not every case belongs in a courtroom. Diversion programs let prosecutors route eligible people — often young people, or people whose offense is driven by addiction or untreated mental illness — into treatment, counseling, restitution, or community service instead of prosecution. Complete the program, and the case is dismissed without a conviction on the record.
Used well, diversion lowers reoffending, keeps people employable and housed, and frees prosecutors to focus on violent and repeat offenders. Used badly — or not at all — it leaves people with records that block jobs, housing, and licenses for decades. That trade-off is a policy choice the elected DA makes.
How voters hold a District Attorney accountable
The DA answers to voters, not to a mayor or a governor. That makes the ballot the main accountability tool. Useful questions to ask any candidate:
- How will you measure success — convictions, or reduced violence and repeat offending?
- What will your office do differently for victims of domestic and sexual violence?
- When will you ask for cash bail, and when won't you?
- Which offenses will be diverted to treatment, and who decides?
- How will you publish data so residents can check your record?
The 2026 Suffolk County District Attorney election
Linda Champion is a Democrat running for Suffolk County District Attorney. She is a prosecutor, educator, and community leader who has spent her career in courtrooms and classrooms across the county — an experienced trial attorney who has handled over 100 cases and more than 20 years of community leadership behind her.
Her platform pairs firm accountability for violent and repeat offenders with real support for victims, seniors, and neighborhoods, and smart justice for cases better answered by treatment than by incarceration.
Frequently asked questions
What is the difference between a District Attorney and an Attorney General?
The District Attorney prosecutes most crimes committed inside one county — in Suffolk County that means Boston, Chelsea, Revere, and Winthrop. The Massachusetts Attorney General is a statewide office that handles civil enforcement, consumer protection, and a narrower set of criminal matters such as multi-county fraud.
Is the Suffolk County District Attorney elected?
Yes. The District Attorney is elected by Suffolk County voters to a four-year term. Because the office sets charging, bail, and diversion policy for the whole county, the election is one of the most consequential local votes on public safety.
Which courts does the Suffolk County DA's office cover?
Assistant district attorneys appear in Suffolk Superior Court and in the Boston Municipal Court departments, plus the Chelsea, Revere (East Boston), Roxbury, Dorchester, West Roxbury, South Boston, and Charlestown divisions, along with juvenile court sessions.
How do I report a crime or get help as a victim?
Call 911 in an emergency. For non-emergencies, contact your local police department, then ask for the victim-witness advocate assigned to your case. Our resources page collects Suffolk County support services in one place.
Can a District Attorney choose not to prosecute certain offenses?
Yes. Prosecutors have broad discretion over which cases to charge, what to charge, and what sentence to recommend. That discretion is why a DA's stated priorities — protecting victims, focusing on violent crime, using treatment instead of jail where appropriate — matter so much in practice.
What does 'smart justice' mean?
It means matching the response to the harm: serious, violent, and repeat offenders are prosecuted firmly, while low-level cases driven by addiction, mental illness, or poverty are routed to treatment and diversion so they do not turn into lifelong cycles of incarceration.