Rasha Shields

I am a former federal prosecutor with more than 20 years of first-chair trial and appellate experience. I defend companies and executives in high-stakes civil cases and criminal investigations, including DOJ and State Attorneys General matters. I also assist companies in conducting internal investigations and developing effective compliance programs. I have been the lead trial counsel in federal court and have argued before the California Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit, the California Court of Appeal, and federal and state trial courts.Prior to rejoining Jones Day, I was an Assistant United States Attorney for more than seven years and served as the Deputy Chief of the Organized Crime Drug Enforcement Task Force Section. As a federal prosecutor, I first-chaired trials, argued appeals, and directed federal and local law enforcement agencies in grand jury and wiretap investigations. My investigations and prosecutions involved a variety of crimes, including money laundering, organized crime, high-level drug trafficking, fraud, and internet-related crimes. I also supervised other prosecutors, evaluated investigations for prosecution, and trained law enforcement agents. I am committed to public service and serving pro bono clients. I am on the board of California Minority Counsel Program. I am the past president of California ChangeLawyers, the Arab American Lawyers Association of Southern California, and the UCLA Law Alumni Association. I am actively involved in several diversity pipeline programs, including being a member of the Just the Beginning Los Angeles Steering Committee. I am a Life Member of the Women Lawyers Association of Los Angeles and a member of the Los Angeles Chancery Club.In 2023, I was appointed by Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass to serve on the Los Angeles Police Commission, a five-member civilian board tasked with overseeing the LAPD. I served as the Vice President of the Commission from 2023 to 2025, and currently serve as President of the Commission.Also in 2023, I was appointed by the Chief Justice of the California Supreme Court to serve on the Supreme Court and Court of Appeal Prevention of Bias Committee.I serve on Jones Day's firmwide Inclusion & Advancement Committee and Jones Day's Task Force on Constitutional Policing and Civil Justice Reform. I immigrated to the United States from Egypt and was the first person in my extended family to obtain a postgraduate degree.