Overview
- Djuna Perkins claimed the Democratic nomination for Norfolk County district attorney after Adam W. Deitch conceded and election totals showed her with about 27,000 votes.
- Perkins’s campaign emphasized restoring public trust and increasing transparency in the prosecutor’s office as central promises voters rewarded at the ballot.
- The primary contest was shaped by criticism of outgoing DA Michael Morrissey’s handling of two high-profile matters: the prosecution of Karen Read and the investigation into Sandra Birchmore’s death.
- Federal prosecutors have charged former Stoughton detective Matthew Farwell in Birchmore’s death, a development that critics said undercut local decisions not to bring charges and intensified calls for oversight.
- Perkins will be the heavy favorite in November because there is no Republican on the ballot and she will face independent Joseph M. Pagliarulo; the Norfolk DA’s office prosecutes crimes in 27 cities and towns and serves more than 740,000 residents, meaning any reforms will affect a large population.