Rise to Success: Career Highlights of Marilyn Mosby

Discover the career path of Marilyn Mosby, from the first major opportunity to industry-changing achievements.

Marilyn Mosby is an American lawyer and politician who served as the State's Attorney for Baltimore from 2015 to 2023. As the youngest state prosecutor for a major U.S. city, she rose to national prominence during the Freddie Gray case in 2015. Mosby led the investigation into Gray's death and subsequently prosecuted the police officers involved in his arrest and transport, though the prosecution was ultimately unsuccessful. Her tenure as State's Attorney was marked by both high-profile cases and controversies.

Sections (4)

Full Timeline Career & Achievements Challenges & Struggles Controversies & Scandals

2005: Career as Law Clerk and Assistant State's Attorney

From 2005, Mosby served as a law clerk, an Assistant State's Attorney for Baltimore, and a Liberty Mutual fraud investigator.

June 2013: Announced Candidacy for State's Attorney

In June 2013, Marilyn Mosby announced her plans to run for State's Attorney for the City of Baltimore.

2014: End of time as fraud investigator

In 2014, Marilyn Mosby's tenure as Liberty Mutual fraud investigator came to an end.

January 8, 2015: Sworn into Office

On January 8, 2015, Marilyn Mosby was sworn into office as State's Attorney, becoming the youngest top prosecutor in a major US city. Soon after her first term in office had begun, Mosby announced restructuring of her office that was inspired by ideas from prosecutors' offices in New York, Los Angeles, and Atlanta. Deputy State's Attorney Janice Bledsoe was named to oversee the new division of "criminal intelligence". Mosby reestablished community liaison positions, which her predecessor had eliminated, to inform residents of developments in cases relevant to their neighborhood. She created the Policy and Legislative Affairs Unit to advocate for legislation to prosecute cases more efficiently.

January 2015: Administration Began

Since Marilyn Mosby's administration began in January 2015, she oversaw successful prosecutions of a number of locally highlighted offenders, such as Darryl Anderson, Capone Chase, Nelson Clifford, Mustafa Eraibi, and Cornell Harvey.

May 2015: Secured Conviction of Nelson Clifford

In May 2015, Marilyn Mosby secured the conviction of Nelson Clifford, a sex-offender who was acquitted in four previous sexual assault cases.

May 21, 2015: Grand Jury Indictment

On May 21, 2015, a grand jury indicted the officers on most of the original charges filed by Marilyn Mosby, with the exception of charges of illegal imprisonment and false arrest, and added charges of reckless endangerment for all the officers involved.

December 2015: Mistrial Declared in Porter Case

In December 2015, the trial of Officer William Porter resulted in a hung jury, and the judge declared a mistrial.

2015: Became State's Attorney of Baltimore

In 2015, Marilyn Mosby became the State's Attorney of Baltimore, the youngest state prosecutor for any major city in the United States. In 2015 she gained national attention following the killing of Freddie Gray, after which she led a highly publicized investigation and unsuccessful murder prosecution of the police officers who arrested and transported Gray.

2015: Charged Officers in Freddie Gray Case

In 2015, Marilyn Mosby charged six police officers in the Freddie Gray case, with charges including second-degree murder and involuntary manslaughter.

2015: Created 24-hour War Room

In 2015, in response to a spike in violent crime in Baltimore, Marilyn Mosby and newly appointed interim Police Commissioner Kevin Davis announced that prosecutors and police officers would co-locate inside of a 24-hour "war room" in which law enforcement would target violent repeat offenders around the clock.

May 11, 2016: Nero Acquittal

On May 11, 2016, Officer Edward Nero was acquitted of all charges in the Freddie Gray case, leading to criticism of Marilyn Mosby.

June 23, 2016: Goodson Acquittal and Complaint Filed

On June 23, 2016, Officer Goodson was acquitted on all counts, and a complaint was filed against Marilyn Mosby with the Maryland's Attorney Grievance Commission.

May 2018: Lawsuit Blocked

In May 2018, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals blocked a lawsuit filed by five of the six police officers charged by Mosby.

November 2018: Supreme Court Denied Appeal

In November 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court denied the officers' appeal.

2018: Mosby Re-elected

In 2018, Mosby was re-elected as State's Attorney.

January 2019: Stopped Prosecuting Marijuana Possession

In January 2019, Marilyn Mosby announced that her office would no longer prosecute individuals for marijuana possession, regardless of quantity. She added that she would vacate nearly 5,000 marijuana possession convictions.

2020: Stopped Prosecuting Certain Crimes Due to COVID-19

In 2020, during the COVID-19 pandemic, Marilyn Mosby announced that her office would not pursue charges related to drug possession, prostitution, minor traffic violations, and low-level offenses in order to halt the spread of the coronavirus in Baltimore prisons.

March 2021: Made Policy Permanent

In March 2021, Marilyn Mosby made the policy of not prosecuting certain crimes permanent, as she said that the temporary experiment had not led to more serious crimes.