Rachael Rollins, whom the U.S. Senate just confirmed as U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts, threatened to arrest local reporters in a resurfaced video from January 2021.
Rollins also accused the reporters of putting her children’s lives at stake when they approached her for an interview close to her home.
Rollins, visibly upset, accused the reporters of filming her home. However, Rollins’s home is not visible at any point during the altercation.
“So as a black woman in this moment in this country, you’re going to put my (expletive) house on the screen?” she questioned. As the reporters explained they were there to ask a question, Rollins demanded they leave and told them to ask her questions when she is at work.
“Get away from my family. Speak to me at my job. If I get hurt or harmed because of this — you are on the record for that — or my kids are (expletive) killed,” she said.
Rollins told the reporters they were on private property before threatening to alert police and file a report. “Who do you think you are? This is private property. Get out of here. You know what I’ll do? I’ll call the police on you and make an allegation, and we’ll see how that works with you,” said Rollins.
Rollins then threatened to discover the name of the Boston reporter who approached her to ask questions. “So the rantings of a white woman get you here and scare my children. Get off of our private property here. And I swear to God, I’m dead serious. I will find your name,” she said.
“You can ask me somewhere else. Do not have a camera in front of my house.”
As the interaction ended, Rollins threatened to have the reporters arrested by the Boston police. “Get them out of here. This is the Boston police. I will have you arrested. I swear to God. My children are going to be hurt,” she yelled.
The reporters, with Boston 25 Investigates, sought to question Rollins about an incident in which she allegedly threatened to write a woman a ticket in a mall parking lot.
Rollins was confirmed as U.S. Attorney for Massachusetts on Wednesday after Vice President Kamala Harris broke a 50-50 tie in the U.S. Senate. All 50 Republicans opposed the former Suffolk County District Attorney.
President Joe Biden nominated Rollins in July, which caused Republican lawmakers to loudly oppose her nomination.
Sen. Tom Cotton (R-AR) said in July:
Democrats have defunded police departments, stopped prosecutions for numerous crimes, ended cash bail, and demanded early release even for violent criminals. These actions resulted in a historic increase in murders and contributed to the crime wave. Rachael Rollins won’t stand up for the victims of these crimes, and I will seek to stop her nomination.
Sen. Ted Cruz said Rollins “is part of a web of prosecutors who refuse to prosecute crime.
Rollins gained conservative opponents when she released a policy memo after taking office in January 2019 that instructed Suffolk County prosecutors to decline to prosecute 15 charges. These charges include crimes like trespassing, shoplifting, receiving stolen property, possession with intent to distribute, and resisting arrest.