Areas of focus since taking office have included:
- Created the Hate Crimes Unit in 2019. The Unit’s mission is to investigate and prosecute hate crimes by following up on every credible tip and offer departmental resources to assist local and federal law enforcement partners in this effort.
- Brought together dozens of different organizations to work collaboratively to tackle the challenge of elder abuse with the Elder Abuse Task Force.
- Launched the state’s first Payroll Fraud Enforcement Unit to investigate Michigan establishments that illegally misclassify workers or withhold wages and benefits.
Professional background: AG Nessel assumed office as Michigan AG in January 2019. Prior to seeking public office, AG Nessel was President of the Fair Michigan Foundation, an anti-hate crime task force she founded. Before that, in 2005, AG Nessel opened her own law firm, Nessel and Kessel Law, handling criminal defense cases, civil rights actions and general tort litigation. AG Nessel began her legal career as an Assistant Prosecutor in the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office.
Education: AG Nessel received a B.A. from the University of Michigan, and she received a J.D. from Wayne State University Law School.
Personal: AG Nessel lives in southeast Michigan with her wife, Alanna Maguire, and her twin sons, Alex and Zach.