- Died:
- November 7, 2016, Miami (aged 78)
- Title / Office:
- attorney general (1993-2001), United States
- Political Affiliation:
- Democratic Party
- Role In:
- Waco siege
Janet Reno
-
Who was Janet Reno?
Janet Reno (1938–2016) was an American lawyer and public official. In 1993, she became the first woman to serve as U.S. attorney general, holding the position until 2001.
Reno's career in politics began in 1971, and she became state attorney in 1978. President Bill Clinton nominated Reno for U.S. attorney general in 1993, and the Senate quickly approved her. During her time in office, she worked to protect women seeking abortions and drafted legislation broadening child pornography laws. One of her most controversial decisions was ordering the FBI to conduct the final raid on the Branch Davidian cult compound near Waco, Texas, which resulted in the deaths of 86 adults and 17 children.
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What role did Janet Reno serve in the U.S. government?
Janet Reno was the first woman to serve as U.S. attorney general, holding the position from 1993 to 2001. President Bill Clinton nominated her after two unsuccessful nominations of other candidates, and the U.S. Senate quickly approved her.
Some of her actions include securing greater protection for women seeking abortions and drafting new legislation broadening the scope of child pornography laws. Reno also ordered the FBI to conduct the final raid on the Branch Davidian cult compound near Waco, Texas, which resulted in the deaths of 86 adults and 17 children. She accepted full responsibility for the incident, which helped her earn the respect of many Americans.
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When did Janet Reno become Attorney General of the United States?
Janet Reno became the first woman Attorney General of the United States in 1993, serving from 1993 to 2001. President Bill Clinton nominated her after two unsuccessful nominations. Reno quickly gained Senate approval. Early in her tenure, she focused on protecting women seeking abortions from harassment. A controversial decision was the FBI raid on the Branch Davidian cult compound near Waco, Texas, which resulted in the deaths of 86 adults and 17 children. Reno's acceptance of responsibility and regret garnered her respect despite the tragedy. She also drafted legislation to broaden child pornography laws and clashed with the White House over violence on television and merging the FBI and Drug Enforcement Administration.
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Why was Janet Reno's appointment as Attorney General considered historic?
Janet Reno's 1993 appointment as U.S. Attorney General was historic because she was the first woman to hold the position. During her tenure, she addressed issues such as abortion clinic protection, child pornography laws, and violence on television. A controversial decision early in her term was the raid on the Branch Davidian cult compound in Waco, Texas. Despite the criticism she faced, her willingness to take responsibility and her candor earned her respect.
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What are some major events or cases Janet Reno handled as Attorney General?
As Attorney General, Janet Reno faced several significant events and cases. Early in her term, she directed the FBI's raid on the Branch Davidian cult compound in Waco, Texas, which resulted in the deaths of 86 adults and children. Reno's acceptance of responsibility for the tragedy, even as she expressed regret, earned her respect from many. Other notable actions include her efforts to broaden child pornography laws and her clashes with the White House over regulating violence on television. Reno also played a key role in the case of Elián González, a Cuban child, ordering his return to his father in Cuba.
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How did Janet Reno influence the Department of Justice and U.S. law enforcement during her time in office?
During her tenure as U.S. Attorney General (1993–2001), Janet Reno, the first woman in the role, significantly influenced the Department of Justice. Reno drafted new legislation broadening the scope of child pornography laws. She also clashed with the White House over regulating violence on network television and her refusal to endorse merging the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Despite facing criticism, her candor and acceptance of responsibility, even in controversial events like the Waco raid, earned her respect.
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Janet Reno (born July 21, 1938, Miami, Florida, U.S.—died November 7, 2016, Miami) was an American lawyer and public official who became the first woman attorney general (1993–2001) of the United States.
Reno settled with her family on 20 acres (8 hectares) of wilderness at the edge of the Everglades, outside Miami, Florida, when she was eight years old. There her parents built the house she would live in for many years to come. Her father, a Danish immigrant, was a police reporter for the Miami Herald, and her mother was an investigative reporter for the Miami News. Reno graduated from Coral Gables High School, where she excelled on the debating team, and went on to Cornell University, earning a degree in chemistry in 1960. She then attended Harvard Law School, and, after graduating in 1963, she went to work as a lawyer.
She began her career in politics in 1971 when she was named staff director of the Judiciary Committee of the Florida House of Representatives. In 1973 she was named assistant to the state’s attorney general in Miami and became state attorney in 1978. She was reelected to the post five times, even though she was a Democrat in a largely Republican area.
In 1993, after the unsuccessful nominations of two other candidates, President Bill Clinton nominated Reno for the position of U.S. attorney general, and she was quickly approved by the U.S. Senate. Her early days in office were marked by her efforts to secure greater protection for women seeking abortions, who were often victims of physical harassment from antiabortion activists. Her most controversial early decision, however, was her ordering agents of the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) to conduct the final raid on the compound of the Branch Davidian cult near Waco, Texas. Eighty-six adults and 17 children died as a result of this police action. Reno’s acceptance of full responsibility and her candor and obvious regret over the incident helped her earn the respect of many Americans.
Over the next few years, she drafted new legislation broadening the scope of child pornography laws. She clashed with the White House in her efforts to regulate violence on network television, as well as over her refusal to endorse Vice President Al Gore’s plan to merge the FBI and the Drug Enforcement Administration. Reno played a leading role in ordering relatives in the United States to return a Cuban child, Elián González, to his father in Cuba after his mother died while attempting to flee to the United States. Reno was among the highest-profile cabinet officials, and, despite criticism, she appeared on the television show Saturday Night Live, which had a recurring spoof of her while she served in Washington.
In 2002 Reno unsuccessfully sought the Democratic nomination for governor in Florida. Subsequently she often gave speeches on criminal justice issues in the United States and served on the board of directors of the Innocence Project, which assisted convicted prisoners in seeking exoneration through DNA testing.
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