Kathleen Rice
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Kathleen Maura Rice (born February 15, 1965) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the United States representative for New York's 4th congressional district from 2015 to 2023. She is a member of the Democratic Party. Before serving in Congress, Rice served as the Nassau County district attorney, and, before that, she served as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney's Office in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
and as an assistant district attorney in the Kings County District Attorney's Office in
New York City New York, often called New York City (NYC), is the most populous city in the United States, located at the southern tip of New York State on one of the world's largest natural harbors. The city comprises five boroughs, each coextensive w ...
. On January 29, 2014, Rice announced that she would run for Congress in New York's 4th congressional district to replace retiring Democratic incumbent Carolyn McCarthy. Rice defeated Republican nominee Bruce Blakeman on November 4, 2014, and took office in January 2015. On February 15, 2022, Rice announced that she would retire at the end of her term.


Early life, education, and career

Rice was born in
Manhattan Manhattan ( ) is the most densely populated and geographically smallest of the Boroughs of New York City, five boroughs of New York City. Coextensive with New York County, Manhattan is the County statistics of the United States#Smallest, larg ...
,
New York New York most commonly refers to: * New York (state), a state in the northeastern United States * New York City, the most populous city in the United States, located in the state of New York New York may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * ...
, to Laurence and Christine Rice. She grew up in Garden City, on
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
, as one of 10 siblings. Rice graduated from Garden City High School. She received a B.A. degree from the
Catholic University Catholic higher education includes universities, colleges, and other institutions of higher education privately run by the Catholic Church, typically by religious institutes. Those tied to the Holy See are specifically called pontifical univers ...
in 1987 and a J.D. degree from the Touro Law Center in 1991. In 1992 Rice began her career as an assistant district attorney in the Kings County District Attorney's Office, under District Attorney Charles J. Hynes. She prosecuted cases involving burglaries, robberies and sexual assaults and was the first member of her class to be promoted to the
homicide Homicide is an act in which a person causes the death of another person. A homicide requires only a Volition (psychology), volitional act, or an omission, that causes the death of another, and thus a homicide may result from Accident, accidenta ...
bureau. In 1999, Rice was appointed assistant
United States Attorney United States attorneys are officials of the U.S. Department of Justice who serve as the chief federal law enforcement officers in each of the 94 U.S. federal judicial districts. Each U.S. attorney serves as the United States' chief federal ...
in
Philadelphia Philadelphia ( ), colloquially referred to as Philly, is the List of municipalities in Pennsylvania, most populous city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the List of United States cities by population, sixth-most populous city in the Unit ...
by then-
Attorney General In most common law jurisdictions, the attorney general (: attorneys general) or attorney-general (AG or Atty.-Gen) is the main legal advisor to the government. In some jurisdictions, attorneys general also have executive responsibility for law enf ...
Janet Reno Janet Wood Reno (July 21, 1938 – November 7, 2016) was an American lawyer and public official who served as the 78th United States Attorney General, United States attorney general from 1993 to 2001 under President Bill Clinton. A member of ...
. As a federal prosecutor, she prosecuted white-collar crimes, corporate fraud, gun and drug cases, and public corruption.


Nassau County District Attorney

Rice was elected Nassau County District Attorney in 2005, winning by 7,500 votes to become the first woman to hold the position. She defeated 30-year incumbent Denis E. Dillon, who had generally won reelection easily, even after switching his affiliation from Democratic to Republican in 1989. Rice was the first serious opponent Dillon had faced since his first run in 1974. Rice was reelected in 2009 and 2013.


Tenure and issues


Impaired driving

In 2006, Rice declared her first major policy initiative to be an "assault on the drunk driving epidemic". She lowered the blood-alcohol level at which plea bargains were offered, supported Leandra's Law, and charged a man with murder after a 2005 accident that killed a limo driver and a child.


Reform efforts

In September 2011, Rice's office arrested seven students after uncovering an
SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and Test score, scoring have changed several times. For much of its history, it was called the Scholastic Aptitude Test ...
cheating ring on Long Island. When this case led to the discovery of a wider-spread cheating scandal, Rice worked with the
College Board The College Board, styled as CollegeBoard, is an American not-for-profit organization that was formed in December 1899 as the College Entrance Examination Board (CEEB) to expand access to higher education. While the College Board is not an asso ...
, which administers the test, to update security standards to halt cheating in the future. This effort sparked other test administrators, like that which gives the ACT, to update their standards as well. Rice has also received credit for teen education programs geared toward
cyberbullying Cyberbullying (cyberharassment or online bullying) is a form of bullying or harassment using electronic means. Since the 2000s, it has become increasingly common, especially among teenagers and adolescents, due to young people's increased u ...
, drug use, texting and dangerous driving. In 2007, Rice's office, Nassau County and Hempstead police led a counter-assault on Terrace Avenue, a major drug haven and crime-ridden street in
Long Island Long Island is a densely populated continental island in southeastern New York (state), New York state, extending into the Atlantic Ocean. It constitutes a significant share of the New York metropolitan area in both population and land are ...
's Hempstead Village. Through a combination of zero-tolerance enforcement for repeat and violent offenders, and social-service based jail diversion for nonviolent and first time offenders, crime was reduced in the area. In 2008, following the trampling death of a
Walmart Walmart Inc. (; formerly Wal-Mart Stores, Inc.) is an American multinational retail corporation that operates a chain of hypermarkets (also called supercenters), discount department stores, and grocery stores in the United States and 23 other ...
employee at one of its Black Friday sales events, Rice encouraged Walmart to upgrade its security protocols at its nearly 100 New York stores. In 2012, Rice came out in favor of decriminalizing small amounts of "plain view" marijuana. She has also supported efforts to allow some citizens to seal prior low-level, non-violent convictions in the hopes of improving their chances of obtaining employment. In the same year, then-Governor
Andrew Cuomo Andrew Mark Cuomo ( , ; born December 6, 1957) is an American politician and lawyer who served as the 56th governor of New York from 2011 until his resignation in 2021. A member of the Democratic Party and son of former governor Mario Cuomo, ...
chose Rice to be a member of the Moreland Commission on Utility Storm Preparation and Response, a panel tasked with investigating the failures of the
Long Island Power Authority Long Island Power Authority (LIPA, "lie-pah") is a municipal subdivision of the State of New York that owns the electric transmission and electric distribution system serving all of Long Island and a portion of Queens in New York City known as ...
(LIPA) after
Hurricane Sandy Hurricane Sandy (unofficially referred to as Superstorm Sandy) was an extremely large and devastating tropical cyclone which ravaged the Caribbean and the coastal Mid-Atlantic (United States), Mid-Atlantic region of the United States in late ...
. The panel recommended that LIPA be replaced by a private, investor-owned company and that the Public Service Commission, which has regulation authority, be given more power to penalize and fine poor-performing utility companies. Rice supports the "Raise the Age NY" initiative to treat nonviolent teen offenders as juveniles in the criminal justice system.


Guns, gangs, and violent crime

Rice implemented gun buyback programs in some of the county's most crime-plagued areas, which removed more than 2,000 guns from the streets. She also spoke out in favor of then-Governor Cuomo's gun control legislation and created the office's first ever gun prosecution unit. In 2011 Rice announced a major prosecution of nine gun dealers and gun store employees police arrested in an undercover operation investigating alleged illegal assault weapons. This was the second arrest for Martin Tretola, one of the gun shop owners. He was previously arrested on firearms-related violations in 2007. In 2012, a federal jury delivered a verdict rejecting Nassau County's and Rice's charges for the 2007 arrest and awarded Tretola $3 million in compensatory damages and $2 million in punitive damages. This judgment was reduced to $1.3 million in total upon appeal.


Questions on Rice's early prosecution cases

The Kings County district attorney's prosecution of Antowine Butts for double homicide imploded and ended in an acquittal in 2000, but not before Butts spent two years in a
Rikers Island Rikers Island is a prison island in the East River in the Bronx, New York (state), New York, United States, that contains New York City's largest jail. Named after Abraham Rycken, who took possession of the island in 1664, the island was orig ...
jail cell. After the case unraveled, Butts alleged that he was a victim of prosecutorial misconduct in a civil rights lawsuit that was settled with New York City. Rice was among those named in that suit, but has largely escaped attention for starting her career in an office in which prosecutors are alleged to have put some innocent people behind bars with coerced confessions, bogus witness statements, coached lineup identifications and other tactics. In April 2013, Rice announced the arrest of 18 members of the "Rollin' 60's" gang, an "ultra-violent" subset of the Crips. Rice charged these defendants with crimes ranging from attempted murder of a police officer to assault and robbery to gun and drug sales.


Public corruption

Among those Rice has charged and convicted of corruption include a deputy police commissioner, a
Long Beach Long Beach is a coastal city in southeastern Los Angeles County, California, United States. It is the list of United States cities by population, 44th-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 451,307 as of 2022. A charter ci ...
City Council member, former Nassau County legislators, and several town building department employees. In July 2013, Cuomo appointed Rice to be one of three co-chairs of the Moreland Commission on Public Corruption. The commission's work is ongoing. Rice formed Nassau's first-ever
Medicaid Medicaid is a government program in the United States that provides health insurance for adults and children with limited income and resources. The program is partially funded and primarily managed by U.S. state, state governments, which also h ...
and public assistance fraud unit, which has since secured millions of dollars in restitution for Nassau taxpayers.


Jesse Friedman case

In 2010, Rice ordered the review of a 1987 case in which Arnold Friedman and his son, Jesse, pleaded guilty to sexually abusing young boys in their Great Neck, Long Island home. Rice formed a panel of outside experts—including the
Innocence Project Innocence Project, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit legal organization that works to exonerate the wrongly convicted through DNA testing and other forms of post-conviction relief, as well as advocates for criminal justice reform to prevent futur ...
's
Barry Scheck Barry Charles Scheck (born September 19, 1949) is an American attorney and legal scholar. He received national media attention while serving on O. J. Simpson's defense team, collectively dubbed the "Dream Team (law), Dream Team", helping to win ...
(who spoke out against the review)—to examine whether Jesse Friedman had wrongfully confessed. In a 172-page report released in July 2013, investigators found that Friedman had not been wrongfully convicted.


President of DAASNY

In July 2013, Rice was inducted as president of the District Attorneys Association of the State of New York (DAASNY).


U.S. House of Representatives


Tenure

In an August 2017 tweet, Rice referred to both the
National Rifle Association The National Rifle Association of America (NRA) is a gun rights advocacy group based in the United States. Founded in 1871 to advance rifle marksmanship, the modern NRA has become a prominent Gun politics in the United States, gun rights ...
and its spokeswoman,
conservative Conservatism is a cultural, social, and political philosophy and ideology that seeks to promote and preserve traditional institutions, customs, and values. The central tenets of conservatism may vary in relation to the culture and civiliza ...
political commentator A pundit is a person who offers opinion in an authoritative manner on a particular subject area (typically politics, the social sciences, technology or sport), usually through the mass media. The term pundit describes both women and men, altho ...
and author
Dana Loesch Dana Lynn Loesch ( ; ; born September 28, 1978) is an American radio and television host, TV host. She is a former spokesperson for the National Rifle Association and a former writer and editor for ''Breitbart News''. Loesch was the television ho ...
, as national security threats under President
Donald Trump Donald John Trump (born June 14, 1946) is an American politician, media personality, and businessman who is the 47th president of the United States. A member of the Republican Party (United States), Republican Party, he served as the 45 ...
. Loesch reacted to Rice's tweet by calling for her resignation. As of September 2021, Rice had voted in line with
Joe Biden Joseph Robinette Biden Jr. (born November 20, 1942) is an American politician who was the 46th president of the United States from 2021 to 2025. A member of the Democratic Party (United States), Democratic Party, he served as the 47th vice p ...
's stated position 100% of the time. Rice was one of three House Democrats on the Energy Committee to vote against a provision that would lower prescription drug prices. In 2022, Rice criticized Democratic groups aiding
far-right Far-right politics, often termed right-wing extremism, encompasses a range of ideologies that are marked by ultraconservatism, authoritarianism, ultranationalism, and nativism. This political spectrum situates itself on the far end of the ...
GOP primary candidates to make for easier opponents in November.


Committee assignments

* Committee on Homeland Security ** Subcommittee on Cybersecurity, Infrastructure Protection, and Innovation ** Subcommittee on Border Security, Facilitation, and Operations (Chair) * Committee on Veterans' Affairs ** Subcommittee on Economic Opportunity ** Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations


Caucus memberships

*
New Democrat Coalition The New Democrat Coalition is a caucus in the House of Representatives of the United States Congress made up of Democrats, primarily liberals and centrists, who take a pro-business stance and a liberal-to-moderate approach to fiscal matte ...
* U.S.-Japan Caucus


Electoral history


2005 Nassau County District Attorney election

In 2005, Rice returned to Nassau County and declared her candidacy for
District Attorney In the United States, a district attorney (DA), county attorney, county prosecutor, state attorney, state's attorney, prosecuting attorney, commonwealth's attorney, or solicitor is the chief prosecutor or chief law enforcement officer represen ...
on the Democratic line. She challenged 30-year incumbent Denis E. Dillon. Throughout the campaign, Rice provided an alternative to Dillon, pledging to cut plea bargaining and touting her would-be zero tolerance policy for drunk driving. She also committed herself to modernizing the office's approach to domestic violence and crimes of sexual abuse. Rice edged out Dillon, 51%–49%.


2009 Nassau County District Attorney election

In 2009, Rice was challenged by law clerk Joy Watson. She defeated Watson, 54%–46%.


2010 New York State Attorney General Democratic primary

In May 2010, Rice announced that she would seek the Democratic nomination for
New York State Attorney General The attorney general of New York is the chief legal officer of the U.S. state of New York and head of the Department of Law of the state government. The office has existed in various forms since 1626, originally established under the Dutch c ...
. The race pitted Rice against four Democratic opponents: then-State Senator
Eric Schneiderman Eric Tradd Schneiderman (born December 31, 1954) is an American lawyer and politician who served as the 65th attorney general of New York from 2011 until his resignation in May 2018. Schneiderman, a member of the Democratic Party, spent ten year ...
, former prosecutor Sean Coffey, former State Assemblyman Richard Brodsky, and former insurance commissioner Eric Dinallo. Though originally considered a long shot, she lost the five-way primary to Schneiderman by just two points, 34% to 32%.


2013 Nassau County District Attorney election

In 2013, Rice was challenged by Law Secretary Howard Sturim. Rice defeated Sturim, 59%–41%.


2014 U.S. House of Representatives New York's 4th District election

In June 2014, Rice won the Democratic primary election for the U.S. House of Representatives in New York's 4th congressional district, defeating Nassau County Legislator Kevan Abrahams, 56%–44%. In November, she was elected, defeating Republican nominee Bruce Blakeman, 53%–47%.


2016 U.S. House of Representatives New York's 4th District election

Rice was reelected, defeating Republican nominee David Gurfein, 59.6%–40.4%, a margin of about 60,000 votes.


2018 U.S. House of Representatives New York's 4th District election

Rice was reelected, defeating Republican nominee Ameer Benno, 61.3%–38.7%.


2020 U.S. House of Representatives New York's 4th District election

Rice was reelected, defeating Republican nominee Douglas L. Tuman and
Green Green is the color between cyan and yellow on the visible spectrum. It is evoked by light which has a dominant wavelength of roughly 495570 nm. In subtractive color systems, used in painting and color printing, it is created by a com ...
nominee Joseph R. Naham 56.1% to Tuman's 43.0% and Naham's 0.8%.


Personal life

Rice has never married and has no children. She is
Roman Catholic The Catholic Church (), also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.27 to 1.41 billion baptized Catholics worldwide as of 2025. It is among the world's oldest and largest international institut ...
.


See also

* Women in the United States House of Representatives


References


External links

* , - {{DEFAULTSORT:Rice, Kathleen 1965 births 21st-century American women politicians American Roman Catholics American women lawyers Catholic University of America alumni Catholic politicians from New York (state) Democratic Party members of the United States House of Representatives from New York (state) Female members of the United States House of Representatives Garden City High School (New York) alumni Living people Nassau County district attorneys People from Garden City, New York Politicians from Nassau County, New York Touro Law Center alumni Women in New York (state) politics 21st-century Roman Catholics 21st-century New York (state) politicians 21st-century members of the United States House of Representatives