[Congressional Record Volume 157, Number 126 (Tuesday, August 23, 2011)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E1529]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




HONORING SANTA CLARA COUNTY ASSISTANT DISTRICT ATTORNEY ROLANDA PIERRE-
                       DIXON UPON HER RETIREMENT

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                            HON. ZOE LOFGREN

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, August 23, 2011

  Ms. ZOE LOFGREN of California. Mr. Speaker, I rise to honor and 
commend Santa Clara County Assistant District Attorney Rolanda Pierre-
Dixon who is retiring in August after over 30 years of service. Ms. 
Pierre-Dixon's tenure has been marked by professionalism, universal 
respect, style and grace.
  By the time Ms. Pierre-Dixon entered ninth grade, she knew that she 
would be an attorney. Her call to service came when, at that young age, 
she learned that lawyers ``speak for those who can't speak for 
themselves.'' She applied herself with the aim of achieving that goal 
and graduated from San Jose State University and Santa Clara University 
School of Law.
  In her professional life, Ms. Pierre-Dixon has become an expert in 
the prosecution of domestic violence crimes. She gained this expertise 
in a very personal way when a friend sought her help in getting out of 
an abusive relationship. Seeking to give the abused a voice, in 1991, 
Ms. Pierre-Dixon started the Domestic Violence Unit in the Santa Clara 
County District Attorney's Office and supervised that unit for over 17 
years. This unit now reviews over 4,400 cases per year. She also serves 
as the Office Liaison on Human Trafficking, and she has been the 
Supervisor of the Family Violence Unit, Victim Witness Advocates, 
Criminal Issuing and the Victim Restitution Unit.
  Tireless in her efforts to speak for those who can't speak for 
themselves, Ms. Pierre-Dixon serves on numerous committees and holds an 
executive office position on the Domestic Violence Council. She chairs 
the Domestic Violence Review Committee, is a Senior Fellow of the 
American Leadership Forum Silicon Valley, Advisory Board Member of the 
SJSU School of Nursing, Board Member of the SJSU Administration of 
Justice Bureau, and a Member of the State Bar Commission on Access and 
Fairness.
  I know I join many others in Santa Clara County in thanking Ms. 
Pierre-Dixon for her indefatigable efforts to prevent and end domestic 
violence in our community, and I wish her well upon her retirement.

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