Macon prosecutor, Mercer adjunct named first asst. U.S. attorney for GA Middle District
Shanelle Booker made history this week.
The prosecutor was named acting first assistant U.S. attorney and criminal division chief for the Middle District of Georgia by U.S. Attorney Peter Leary. Booker is the first woman to serve as first assistant U.S. attorney — and the first Black woman to hold both positions — in the Middle District, which covers 70 counties including Bibb and Houston.
Booker will supervise the criminal, civil and administrative division and replaces long-time criminal chief and federal prosecutor Michael Solis.
“Acting First Assistant U.S. Attorney Booker is a selfless and dedicated prosecutor, who has demonstrated great leadership and judgment throughout her career seeking justice on behalf of all people,” Leary said in a press release. “It is my honor to name her to this new role within the office, where she will undoubtedly continue her legacy of seeking equal justice under the law for our citizens. I also want to thank Michael Solis for 33 years of outstanding service to the Middle District of Georgia and wish him well on this new phase with the Department of Justice.”
Booker, who lives in Macon and is an adjunct professor at Mercer University, has worked in the Middle District since 2015, prosecuting violent crime, child exploitation, sex trafficking, public corruption and fraud cases, according to a release. She previously worked in Brunswick and Arkansas.
She mentors girls through the Macon Regional Youth Detention Center and works with the Just Beginning Foundation to “inspire law careers among underrepresented students,” according to a release. She is a member of the Delta Sigma Theta Sorority and is a board member of the Central Georgia Empowerment Fund.
Booker earned her bachelor’s degree from Hampton University and her J.D. from Northwestern in Chicago.
