Tara K. McGrath Sworn in as United States Attorney, Becomes Chief Federal Law Enforcement Officer in One of Nation’s Busiest Districts

NEWS RELEASE SUMMARY – October 5, 2023

SAN DIEGO – Tara K. McGrath, a U.S. Marine Corps veteran and former federal prosecutor in San Diego, was sworn in today as the United States Attorney for the Southern District of California.

Ms. McGrath, 49, was sworn in by Chief United States District Judge Dana M. Sabraw in a ceremony at the federal courthouse this afternoon. Ms. McGrath now oversees one of the busiest United States Attorney’s Offices in the nation.  The office, which has a staff of about 300, serves approximately 3.5 million residents in San Diego and Imperial counties.

Ms. McGrath was nominated by President Biden in March and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Friday, September 29, 2023.

“I am ready to get to work,” Ms. McGrath said. “We face substantial challenges in this region every day and we are incredibly fortunate to have countless public servants committed to our safety and well-being.  I am honored to be rejoining them.”

Ms. McGrath returns to the U.S. Attorney’s Office in San Diego after departing in 2019 to serve as a civilian Litigation Attorney Advisor for the U.S. Marine Corps.  In that role, Ms. McGrath provided senior-level oversight, ethics advice, and trial strategy guidance in criminal investigations and courts-martial across seven military bases in four countries.  She also provided litigation expertise to Headquarters, U.S. Marine Corps.

A seasoned federal prosecutor, Ms. McGrath spent more than 10 years as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Southern District working on behalf of both San Diego and Imperial counties. Initially assigned to the General Crimes and Narcotics Enforcement sections, Ms. McGrath prosecuted more than 500 cases in federal court and led scores of investigations with federal agents involving grand juries, wire taps, and undercover agents. She has argued three cases before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 

During her tenure as an Assistant U.S. Attorney, Ms. McGrath served as a Deputy Chief and Trial Team Leader in the General Crimes Section.  In these roles, she supervised more than 70 federal prosecutors and support staff, overseeing the intake and prosecution of more than 4,000 cases annually, including border crimes, human trafficking, violent crime, public corruption, fraud, racketeering, narcotics, and civil rights cases.

For her work as a prosecutor, Ms. McGrath received the U.S. Department of Justice’s prestigious Director’s Award for Superior Performance, among other recognition. She also received the Department of the Navy’s Meritorious Civilian Service award for her significant contributions to policy development and prosecution of special victim cases.

During her time with the Department of Justice, Ms. McGrath also served as a trial attorney in the Office of Enforcement Operations in Washington, D.C. In that role, she provided technical legal advice to experienced Assistant United States Attorneys and federal agents throughout the United States on gathering electronic evidence in compliance with federal law and DOJ policy, and she coordinated DOJ case management with attorneys from centralized enforcement divisions, including the racketeering, fraud, and narcotics prosecution sections.

Ms. McGrath graduated from University of Michigan Law School in 2001 and earned a B.A., cum laude, from Boston College in 1995.