STAFF COUNSEL
Harris is a 1981 graduate of Hobart and William Smith Colleges where he majored in Anthropology. He graduated from University of New Hampshire, Franklin Pierce School of Law in 1984. Harris began his career in Everett, Massachusetts working as an associate for Attorney Alfred P. Farese, Sr., a widely known criminal defense lawyer. Harris eventually moved into solo practice concentrating in criminal and civil litigation with offices in Salem and Boston. Harris joined YAD as a staff attorney in 2012. Since then, Harris has obtained acquittals in several Youthful Offender life felony cases.
In addition to his trial experience, Harris has argued cases before the Massachusetts Appeals Court and the Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court. Harris also served as a member of Massachusetts Board of Bar Overseers Hearing Committee (2008 – 2012), a conciliator for the Essex County Superior Court and Salem District Court (1993 – 2012) and a mediator for the Boston Municipal Court (2009 – 2011). Harris was a contributor to Juvenile Specific Jury Instructions. CPCS, Youth Advocacy Division (2014) and an editor of An Overview of the Law: Youthful Offender. CPCS, Youth Advocacy Division (2019 Update).