Delores Heredia Ward began her legal career in the 1980's as a paralegal for several solo practitioners in Long Island New York, working in the areas of family law, real estate, federal civil rights claims, and criminal law. She earned her J.D. in 1990 from Hofstra University School of Law, Hempstead, New York, where she was an active member of the Latino Law Student’s Association. She earned her law degree while raising two young boys as a single parent.
After earning her J.D., Ms. Ward served in the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office in New York as an Assistant District Attorney for thirteen years. Since arriving in the D.C. Metro area, Ms. Ward has served two national organizations, providing training and technical assistance to juvenile justice practitioners across the United States.
She is a proud member of the Fairfax Bar Association where she served on the Juvenile and Domestic Relations Committee for several years. She is married and is the proud mother of four and grandmother of four wonderful and unique people.
Ms. Ward attributes her success to her ability to focus on goals, creating plans, working hard, and creative problem-solving in overcoming obstacles. Trust and integrity are the values she lives by.
Delores Heredia Ward is an accomplished attorney with over thirteen years of prosecution experience. She has prosecuted thousands of criminal cases as Assistant District Attorney in Nassau County, New York. She has supervised and trained new attorneys, handled misdemeanor and felony appeals, conducted trials and responded to hundreds of discovery and other motions, researched and argued procedural and evidentiary, has prepared civilian, law enforcement, and expert witnesses for testimony and negotiated dispositions.
Delores Heredia Ward served the Nassau County District Attorney’s Office as a community-oriented prosecutor working to reduce crime by working with the community in high-crime areas to address the conditions that allow crime to flourish. She represented the District Attorney on the board of an afterschool program in a high-crime area, helping to coordinate and enrich the services provided. She also represented the District Attorney in the planning and implementation of a Misdemeanor Treatment Court while building coalitions with community organizations and managing the Community Court prosecution of quality of life crimes. She was actively involved in the Community Court Community Service program, assisting in developing projects that benefited the community including environmental cleanups, graffiti removal, and Dress for Success collections.
Delores Heredia Ward also has senior-level experience managing and providing training programs to prosecutors as a nationally-recognized subject-matter expert in Community Prosecution, Community and Treatment Courts, and Juvenile Justice.
As a Director of the National Juvenile Justice Prosecution Center for the American Prosecutors Research Institute, she oversaw the provision of technical assistance and training to local prosecutors and juvenile justice staff while working effectively with federal, state, and county agencies. She coordinated, prepared, and facilitated multidisciplinary national, state, and local training programs for juvenile justice practitioners. As a Senior Attorney in the National Center for Community Prosecution for the American Prosecutors Research Institute, she provided technical assistance to state and local prosecutors.
Ms. Ward oversaw the publication of monographs and articles highlighting community prosecution successes and juvenile justice issues.
In addition to her public service, Delores Heredia Ward has a long history of volunteer work. Ms. Ward has participated in volunteer activities with the following organizations:
Fairfax Bar Association
Nassau County District Attorney’s Office, New York 1990-2003
Assistant District Attorney
Trial Assistant, 1990-1994
American Prosecutors Research Institute, Virginia 2004-2006
ICF International, Virginia 2006-2009