Boston Bar Association to Present State Senator Cynthia Stone Creem with Distinguished Legislator Award
Press ReleaseThe Boston Bar Association is proud to announce it will confer its Distinguished Legislator Award on State Senator Cynthia Stone Creem at its annual Law Day Dinner on April 26. We recognize Senator Creem for her years of leadership on Beacon Hill, particularly on criminal justice reform issues.
Senator Creem has served in a public capacity for more than 30 years, having been a member and President of the Newton Board of Aldermen and a member of the Governor’s Council prior to becoming State Senator in 1999.
While Chair of the Criminal Justice Committee from 1999-2003, Senator Creem successfully opposed the reinstatement of the death penalty, helped create safety buffer zones around health clinics, reformed the sex offender registry and the state’s drunken driving laws.
As Senate Chair of the Joint Committee on Judiciary from 2009 -13, Senator Creem successfully shepherded legislation reforming the Probation Department, modernizing alimony laws and criminal-history records, securing the right to DNA testing in criminal cases, and enacting sentencing reform to save money and reduce recidivism. During 2013-14, as Chair of Senate Post-Audit and Oversight, she issued three reports which led to legislation addressing issues uncovered during the research phase on: the handling of rape kits by state agencies; a review of state boards and commissions; and, the contracting procedures for information technology projects.
Currently, as Majority Leader and Chair of the Senate Committee on Redistricting, she places a high priority on issues including: Criminal Justice Reform; Health Care; Energy; Environment; Women’s Issues; Civil Rights; Education; and Revenue.
Senator Creem is a practicing family law attorney serving Of Counsel at the Boston law firm Sugarman, Rogers, Barshak & Cohen.