Dominique Malone Boni, L’26, has been selected as an E. Barrett Prettyman Fellow, a criminal defense fellowship administered by Georgetown Law. She is the first Penn Carey Law graduate to receive the Prettyman Fellowship since 2016.

Established in 1960, the competitive program annually awards two-year fellowships to three recent law school graduates focused on providing high-quality representation to adults and adolescents accused of crimes. Fellows also receive rigorous training in criminal trial advocacy and clinical teaching.

“One of the greatest honors I’ve experienced is being an advocate that someone can count on during one of the most traumatic times of their lives—someone in their corner when every other actor in the system seeks to dehumanize them,” said Ms. Boni. “Being a Prettyman Fellow allows me to not only serve those facing incarceration, but to give back to communities that helped me get here by teaching the next generation of advocates and engaging in the best possible training to be the advocate my future clients deserve.”

During the first year of the program, fellows engage in intense criminal law, evidence, and trial practice classes, which culminates in representing clients in local courts in Washington, D.C. In year two, fellows continue to maintain caseloads while working as a clinic supervisor in one of three of Georgetown Law’s clinics—the Criminal Defense & Prisoner Advocacy Clinic, Criminal Justice Clinic, and Juvenile Justice Clinic—where they also teach and mentor law students. After the program, fellows are awarded an LLM degree in advocacy.