Ariel Smith | |
---|---|
19th Attorney General of the United States Virgin Islands | |
In office April 14, 2023 – March 15, 2024 | |
Governor | Albert Bryan |
Preceded by | Carol Thomas-Jacobs (acting) |
Succeeded by | Ian Clement (acting) |
Personal details | |
Born | Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands |
Education | Rutgers University, Newark ( JD) |
Ariel K. Smith is a U.S. Virgin Islands lawyer who served as the 19th attorney general of the United States Virgin Islands from 2023 to 2024.
Smith was born on Saint Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands. [1] She graduated from Charlotte Amalie High School. [1] She completed a J.D. from Rutgers Law School. [2]
For over ten years, Smith worked in private practice as an associate attorney with Smock and Moorhead on Saint Thomas. [2] [1] From 2006 to 2011, Smith was an assistant territorial public defender. [2] [1] In this role, she worked in the criminal defense of misdemeanors and felony offenses such as domestic violence and white collar crimes. [2]
In 2011, Smith joined the civil division of the U.S. Virgin Islands Department of Justice as an assistant attorney general, serving role for seven years. [2] In 2016, she was promoted to chief of the civil division where she oversaw five attorneys and two support staff. [2]
On March 20, 2023, governor Albert Bryan nominated Smith to succeed Carol Thomas-Jacobs as the attorney general of the United States Virgin Islands. [2] [3]
In May 2023, Elon Musk was subpoenaed by the US Virgin Islands in part of a larger lawsuit against JP Morgan's alleged ties to Jeffrey Epstein's sex trafficking operations. [4] [5] The lawsuit was filed in the US District Court in Manhattan by former US Virgin Islands Attorney General Denise George, in 2022. [6]
On June 30, 2023, Smith was sworn in as attorney general on a permanent basis during a ceremony at the Governor's Mansion. [7] Smith resigned on March 15, 2024. [8]