By Tony Ferullo
Law community
As a boy living with his family in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Marc-Daniel Paul BS’16, JD’21 remembers the political turmoil, the smell of burning tires, and running home from school with his heart pounding, gunshots ringing in the air.
That changed when his family was granted political asylum in the U.S. in 2007, when Paul was 11. With help from the state, the family found transitional housing in a shelter in Middleborough, Massachusetts, before his parents found jobs and their own apartment.
All of these experiences contributed to his lifelong interest in the law and how it can be used to change people’s lives for the better.
As a new assistant district attorney for Plymouth County, Paul will have a chance to combine his love of courtroom lawyering and community building, along with his desire to bring about change in the justice system.
“I think too often we are quick to believe that bringing the full weight of the law on anyone caught up in the system is the only correct approach to restoring order,” he says. “Incarceration is not always the answer—especially when we consider that certain categories of people tend to be incarcerated more than others for the same offenses.”
He says diversion programs, including specialty courts that address mental health and substance abuse, are critical. But achieving public safety is complicated, he adds. “Looking at legal cases based solely on media coverage is a lot different than being a prosecutor in the middle of a matter. We have to address cases within the confines of the law, and sometimes with all of that media noise, people don’t pick up the complexities.”
Even so, he believes that real criminal justice reform is needed, and it must be driven from the inside, he says.
“You can organize, you can protest, you can write to your local officials, but the people who are the decision makers are ultimately the ones who have the most effect at making change. You need to be a part of the system, have the credentials, and have a seat at the table if you really want to be heard,” he says.
“Keeping our communities safe and restoring the public trust in our legal institutions requires that the people charged with upholding the system not only care about the community but also look like it and can understand it,” he adds.
Throughout law school, Paul worked as a projects manager and paralegal for Fitch Law Partners LLP in downtown Boston, where he was exposed to family law, business litigation, criminal law, and international arbitration.
A year-long stint representing youths in Suffolk’s Juvenile Defenders Clinic also helped prepare him for his future career. His clients in the clinic were in delinquency proceedings at the Boston Juvenile Court on charges ranging from assault and battery to resisting arrest.
It was during his 3L year that Paul caught the attention of Professor Karen Blum, while enrolled in her Police Misconduct Litigation course in January 2021.
“I found Marc to be so thoughtful and insightful in his questions and comments,” Blum says. “I set up a virtual meeting with him when the course was over to discuss his aspirations for his legal career.” When Paul told Blum that he was interested in a position at the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office, Blum made an introduction to one of her former students, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz JD’84.
“Professor Blum was incredibly helpful in assisting me with the steps beyond law school,” says Paul, who began his new job this fall. “We had many conversations about career paths, and she was always very candid in her advice on the best course to follow.”
“One of Marc’s strongest assets is his thoughtfulness. He listens to others and truly thinks very carefully about an issue before responding,” says Blum. “As an assistant district attorney, this trait, along with his intelligence and integrity, will serve him and the Commonwealth well.”
Image by Michael J. Clarke
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Finding his direction at Suffolk Law
Law community
By Beth Brosnan
As a boy living with his family in Port-au-Prince, Haiti, Marc-Daniel Paul BS’16, JD’21 remembers the political turmoil, the smell of burning tires, and running home from school with his heart pounding, gunshots ringing in the air.
That changed when his family was granted political asylum in the U.S. in 2007, when Paul was 11. With help from the state, the family found transitional housing in a shelter in Middleborough, Massachusetts, before his parents found jobs and their own apartment.
All of these experiences contributed to his lifelong interest in the law and how it can be used to change people’s lives for the better.
As a new assistant district attorney for Plymouth County, Paul will have a chance to combine his love of courtroom lawyering and community building, along with his desire to bring about change in the justice system.
“I think too often we are quick to believe that bringing the full weight of the law on anyone caught up in the system is the only correct approach to restoring order,” he says. “Incarceration is not always the answer—especially when we consider that certain categories of people tend to be incarcerated more than others for the same offenses.”
He says diversion programs, including specialty courts that address mental health and substance abuse, are critical. But achieving public safety is complicated, he adds. “Looking at legal cases based solely on media coverage is a lot different than being a prosecutor in the middle of a matter. We have to address cases within the confines of the law, and sometimes with all of that media noise, people don’t pick up the complexities.”
Even so, he believes that real criminal justice reform is needed, and it must be driven from the inside, he says.
“You can organize, you can protest, you can write to your local officials, but the people who are the decision makers are ultimately the ones who have the most effect at making change. You need to be a part of the system, have the credentials, and have a seat at the table if you really want to be heard,” he says.
“Keeping our communities safe and restoring the public trust in our legal institutions requires that the people charged with upholding the system not only care about the community but also look like it and can understand it,” he adds.
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Throughout law school, Paul worked as a projects manager and paralegal for Fitch Law Partners LLP in downtown Boston, where he was exposed to family law, business litigation, criminal law, and international arbitration.
A year-long stint representing youths in Suffolk’s Juvenile Defenders Clinic also helped prepare him for his future career. His clients in the clinic were in delinquency proceedings at the Boston Juvenile Court on charges ranging from assault and battery to resisting arrest.
It was during his 3L year that Paul caught the attention of Professor Karen Blum, while enrolled in her Police Misconduct Litigation course in January 2021.
“I found Marc to be so thoughtful and insightful in his questions and comments,” Blum says. “I set up a virtual meeting with him when the course was over to discuss his aspirations for his legal career.” When Paul told Blum that he was interested in a position at the Plymouth County District Attorney’s Office, Blum made an introduction to one of her former students, Plymouth County District Attorney Timothy Cruz JD’84.
“Professor Blum was incredibly helpful in assisting me with the steps beyond law school,” says Paul, who began his new job this fall. “We had many conversations about career paths, and she was always very candid in her advice on the best course to follow.”
“One of Marc’s strongest assets is his thoughtfulness. He listens to others and truly thinks very carefully about an issue before responding,” says Blum. “As an assistant district attorney, this trait, along with his intelligence and integrity, will serve him and the Commonwealth well.”
Photograph by Michael J. Clarke
Finding his direction at Suffolk Law
Marc-Daniel Paul BS’16, JD’21, assistant district attorney, Plymouth County, Massachusetts