Buta Biberaj, who was elected Loudoun County Commonweath’s Attorney in 2019 — one of a wave of “progressive prosecutors” in Northern Virginia — tells WTOP she plans to be “much more vocal in what I see as being just and unjust,” in her new role as a private attorney.
Biberaj was defeated in her bid for reelection in November 2023 by Bob Anderson, who won by a razor-thin margin of 300 votes.
Now, Biberaj has opened her own firm — VeriJust Law — based in Leesburg. The name is a combination of the Latin words for truth and justice: veritas and justia.
She said she expects to take on civil cases, as well as criminal defense and traffic matters — and to advocate for social justice in her representation of many clients.
“In this role, I’ll have a voice that is actually more of my own, and is not hampered by the role of being an elected official, somebody that’s representing a governmental office,” said Biberaj, who served as the legal redress chair for the Loudoun NAACP until she was elected commonwealth attorney. “So, that will allow me to actually be much more vocal in what I see as being just and unjust in the communities.”
Ex Loudoun County prosecutor Buta Biberaj tells @WTOP she will be “much more vocal in what I see as being just,“ as a private attorney. pic.twitter.com/MkqKHbgiTm
— Neal Augenstein (@AugensteinWTOP) March 1, 2024
Before she was elected as county prosecutor, Biberaj also had decades of experience as a defense attorney and substitute judge.
“From every one of our roles, I’ve always felt that we want to have strong prosecutors, strong defense attorneys, and strong justice, so we come up with the right answer,” she said. “In this particular role, my job really is to make sure that laws are upheld by the government, that they’re not cutting corners, and they’re not doing anything to bypass or to impact negatively the accused’s rights to a fair trial.”
Biberaj was sworn in as Loudoun County’s first elected female Commonwealth’s attorney in 2020, and her tenure coincided with the national debate over police reform after the killing of George Floyd in Minneapolis.
During her reelection campaign, Biberaj touted a drop in violent crime in the county during her years as the county’s top prosecutor. However, Biberaj also drew the ire of some when she made the decision last year to stop trying certain misdemeanor crimes.
In her new role, Biberaj said she anticipates challenging current prosecutorial norms, “When we have individuals who have been wrongfully accused, individuals who are being wrongfully prosecuted and individuals who are being victimized by the system.”
During her time in office, Biberaj — and Loudoun County — were at the center of several culture war cases. She, at times, was targeted by Attorney General Jason Miyares, a Republican, who has characterized Biberaj’s handling of cases as soft on crime.
Biberaj said her current role will likely often put her at odds with the Youngkin administration, and future Virginia governors and elected bodies, over the Commonwealth’s laws.
“I think that’s very possible that it can happen,” Biberaj said. “Much more so on the local level than with the Attorney General.”
However, she wouldn’t be surprised to face Miyares’ office in a local courtroom. “The attorney general, in the past couple of years, was very active in Loudoun County, so, who knows? He may set the opportunity for us.”
Miyares’ office declined to comment.
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