District attorney Irene Lee McLeod ’99 and detective David Sun ’98 discussed jobs in criminal law at the HW4L Campus: Law and Order panel Feb. 27. The event, organized by HW Works and the HW Student Alumni Association, is their first panel of the year. The panels are designed to let students learn more about their career options; this one featured two speakers who work in law enforcement.

Criminal law professionals speak at HW4L

McLeod offered her perspective as a deputy district attorney for Los Angeles County while Sun spoke about his job as a detective for the Los Angeles Police Department.

McLeod and Sun explained how their jobs function together and addressed misconceptions about the relationship between district attorneys and police officers. The speakers also gave students advice about how to pursue a career in the legal profession and start to explore their interests through internships or the LAPD Cadet Program.

“We want to make sure we cover a vast range of fields, so it’s not just all lawyers, it’s not just all detectives,” Alumni Association Co-Chair Noah Aire ’20 said. “So for this one, it would be an officer and a district attorney [to] get different perspectives.”

Students learn more about the field of law enforcement

Attendees had the opportunity to ask questions about working in law enforcement. Students said that the panel was a chance for them to learn more about a career path that they could be interested in.

“I learned more about the intricacies of getting into criminal law and the truth behind what the prosecutors and the detectives do in their daily lives and in their jobs,” Cory Porter ’22 said.