State's Attorney Bernstein
Gregg L. Bernstein is the State's Attorney for Baltimore City, winning election in 2010 and assuming office in January 2011. As the 19th State's Attorney in Baltimore history, he is responsible for the management of an office of more than 400 prosecutors and support staff that investigates and prosecutes individuals who are responsible for criminal offenses that occur in the City.
Mr. Bernstein is a life-long resident of Baltimore. He attended public school and graduated from both the University of Maryland, where he earned a B.A. degree with honors in English, and the University of Maryland Francis King Carey School of Law, where he was an editor of the Law Review. After completing law school, Mr. Bernstein served as a law clerk to the Honorable Elsbeth Bothe in the Circuit Court of Baltimore City.
From 1987 until 1992, Mr. Bernstein prosecuted a wide range of federal criminal cases as an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Maryland. During his tenure, he successfully prosecuted violent offenders, organized criminals, and perpetrators of fraud.
After leaving the United States Attorney's Office, Mr. Bernstein practiced law for many years in the areas of white collar criminal defense and complex civil and commercial litigation. He was a founding partner of the firm Martin, Snyder & Bernstein P.A., where he worked until 2004 when he joined Zuckerman Spaeder LLP, a nationally recognized litigation firm with offices in Baltimore, Washington, and New York. For his many achievements as an attorney, he has received numerous professional awards, including induction as a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers.
Mr. Bernstein's strong commitment to public service and public safety led him to seek election as State's Attorney. In this position, he is primarily focused on the investigation and prosecution of repeat, violent offenders — a relatively small group of individuals that commits a disproportionate volume of the crime in our city, according to research and data. To fulfill this goal and make Baltimore safer, he overhauled the State's Attorney's Office. Among many other major new initiatives, he:
- Created the Major Investigations Unit to pursue repeat, violent offenders more strategically and aggressively;
- Established community prosecution teams dedicated to each of the city's neighborhoods; and
- Launched the Special Victim's Unit to more effectively prosecute sex and domestic violence offenses.
Mr. Bernstein also has expanded the Office's diversion programs for select non-violent defendants for whom incarceration is not an appropriate outcome, such as those who are addicted to drugs, suffering from mental illness, or engaged in prostitution.
When Mr. Bernstein is not working, he enjoys spending time with his wife and children, cycling, and cheering on the Ravens and O's.