U.S. Attorney
Karen P. Hewitt
Karen P. Hewitt was originally appointed as the interim United States Attorney for the Southern District of California by Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, and took the oath of office on February 16, 2007. Pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 546(d), Ms. Hewitt was appointed United States Attorney by the United States District Court for the Southern District of California on October 10, 2007. She was sworn in on October 15, 2007, by the Honorable Irma E. Gonzalez, Chief Judge of the United States District Court.
Ms. Hewitt has served as an attorney in the United States Department of Justice since 1992. Upon joining the Department, Ms. Hewitt was assigned to the Civil Division, Constitutional and Specialized Torts Section, in Washington, D.C., where she litigated hundreds of civil cases on behalf of the United States. In 2000, Ms. Hewitt became an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of California. As an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Ms. Hewitt has represented the United States, its agencies, and individual law enforcement officers in complex civil actions, involving Constitutional claims, Immigration, Torts, Medical Malpractice and Employment Discrimination. From 2003 to 2006, she served as the Deputy Chief of the Civil Division and also supervised the Office’s Affirmative Civil Fraud Unit, which handles prosecution of Defense Procurement Fraud and Health Care Fraud. In January 2006, Ms. Hewitt was selected by former U.S. Attorney Carol C. Lam to serve as the Southern District of California’s Executive Assistant United States Attorney. In that position as the third-in-command, Ms. Hewitt was responsible for overall supervision of approximately 110 Assistant U.S. Attorneys and 120 Support Staff, including criminal and civil case management, administration, budget, hiring, personnel and ethics.
Ms. Hewitt received her undergraduate degree in 1986 from of the University of California, Berkeley, and her law degree in 1989 from the University of San Diego, School of Law. Ms. Hewitt was raised in San Diego County and is a graduate of Valhalla High School. Before joining the Justice Department, Ms. Hewitt was an attorney with the former San Diego law firm of McInnis, Fitzgerald, Rees, Sharkey and McIntyre from 1989 to 1992. Ms. Hewitt is married and has two sons.
