Court Appoints Hayes U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland

Baltimore, Maryland – Kelly O. Hayes has taken the oath of office — administered by Chief Judge George L. Russell III — to remain as the chief federal law enforcement officer for the District of Maryland.  Ms. Hayes was previously appointed U.S. Attorney by the United States Attorney General in February 2025, after serving as Chief of the Office’s Southern Division since 2021.

Pursuant to the Vacancy Reform Act, 28 U.S.C. § 546, the Attorney General has the authority to name a U.S. Attorney to serve on an interim basis for up to 120 days. After that time, if a successor isn’t nominated and confirmed, it falls to the district court to appoint a U.S. Attorney to serve until the confirmation of his or her successor.  The District of Maryland judges recently voted to re-appoint Ms. Hayes as U.S. Attorney for the District of Maryland. Chief Judge Russell swore Ms. Hayes in as U.S. Attorney in front of her family, U.S. Attorney’s Office staff, the Federal Public Defender for the District of Maryland, and court personnel.

“I am honored by the confidence the district judges have placed in me to continue serving as United States Attorney in Maryland,” Hayes said. “It is a privilege to lead this great office and to work alongside such dedicated public servants committed to upholding the rule of law and seeking justice on behalf of our communities.  I look forward to continuing to zealously combat criminal activity to ensure public safety and to steadfastly represent the interests of the United States.”

Ms. Hayes joined the District of Maryland in 2013 as an Assistant United States Attorney.  She has also served as Principal Deputy Chief for the Southern Division, Deputy Chief for the Southern Division, and Deputy Appellate Chief for the District.  As Chief of the Southern Division, Ms. Hayes oversaw all criminal investigations and prosecutions in the Southern Division, including prosecutions related to MS-13, violent crime and illegal firearm possession and trafficking offenses, human trafficking, child exploitation, fraud, and illegal immigration offenses.

Raised in Montgomery County, Maryland, Ms. Hayes completed her undergraduate studies at the University of Maryland at College Park.  She then earned her law degree from the University of North Carolina School of Law. Following law school, Ms. Hayes clerked for the Honorable Janis L. Sammartino in the Southern District of California.

As U.S. Attorney, Ms. Hayes has been and will continue to serve as the chief law enforcement officer for the District of Maryland.  Under Ms. Hayes’s leadership, public safety, national security, and the protection of children are top priorities for the District.

The U.S. Attorney’s Office’s successes under Ms. Hayes’s leadership include securing guilty pleas from a defendant who attempted to murder a witness connected to a federal investigation; a USAID employee, three executives, and two companies involved in a bribery scheme involving $550 million in government contracts; and an individual engaged in the production and distribution of child sexual abuse material.  Additionally, since Ms. Hayes became U.S. Attorney, a defendant was sentenced to more than 22 years for the kidnapping and using a firearm resulting in death during and in relation to a drug trafficking crime; and four individuals were indicted for visa and marriage fraud for facilitating sham marriages.

Assistant U.S. Attorneys will continue to work directly with our law enforcement partners on the federal, state, and local levels to prosecute offenders of these and other federal crimes.

For more information about the Maryland U.S. Attorney’s Office, its priorities, and resources available to help the community, please visit justice.gov/usao-md and justice.gov/usao-md/community-outreach.

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