46 Facts About Janet Reno

Janet Wood Reno was an American lawyer who served as the 78th United States attorney general.

Janet Reno held the position from 1993 to 2001, making her the second-longest serving attorney general, behind only William Wirt.

Janet Reno then worked for the Dade County State Attorney's Office before returning to private practice.

Janet Reno was elected to the Office of State Attorney five times and was the first woman to serve as a state attorney in Florida.

Janet Reno had three younger siblings: Mark; writer Robert Reno; and Maggy Hurchalla.

In 1943, the Janet Reno family moved to a house in then-rural South Miami; it came with enough land to keep farm animals, including cows, chicken, ducks, goats, and turkeys.

Janet Reno helped her parents churn butter, which the family sold to make ends meet.

Jane Janet Reno decided to build a new home herself near the Everglades, learning masonry, electrical work, and plumbing for the task.

The Reno family moved to the house Jane built when Janet 8 was years old.

From 1963 to 1971, Janet Reno worked as an attorney for two Miami law firms.

Janet Reno did not try any cases during her time working for Gerstein.

Janet Reno was one of two candidates Gerstein recommended to replace him.

Janet Reno was the first woman to serve as a state attorney in Florida.

Janet Reno was elected to the Office of State Attorney in November 1978 and was returned to office by the voters four more times.

Janet Reno ran as a liberal, pro-choice Democrat even though Miami-Dade was a conservative county.

Janet Reno did not always face serious challengers, although in 1984 Cuban-American lawyer Jose Garcia-Pedrosa ran against Janet Reno, and picked up the endorsement of the Miami Herald editorial board.

In spite of his support among Miami's Hispanic voters, Janet Reno won the election decisively.

Janet Reno established a drug court which was later replicated in other parts of the country.

Janet Reno worked actively in various civic organizations, including the Miami Coalition for a Safe and Drug Free Community and the Beacon Council, which was formed to address Miami-Dade's economic development.

In May 1980, Janet Reno prosecuted five white policemen who were accused of beating a black insurance salesman, named Arthur McDuffie, to death.

When Janet Reno was nominated for attorney general in the Clinton administration, the Nation and Miami New Times raised questions about her handling of these cases, Debbie Nathan's journal article was faxed to the White House, and Fijnje's father "sent a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee".

When she was asked in 2002, Janet Reno said that she lacked the time to review the Country Walk case files.

Janet Reno was sworn in the next day, becoming the first woman to serve as US Attorney General.

Janet Reno remained Attorney General for the rest of Clinton' presidency, making her the longest-serving Attorney General since William Wirt in 1829.

In 1994, Janet Reno tasked the Justice Department with compiling a report on DNA exoneration.

Janet Reno commissioned the report after reading about the exoneration of a death row inmate.

Janet Reno wanted to know how many cases existed like the one she read about and what the Department of Justice could learn from it.

Janet Reno changed policies on how to interview eyewitnesses and laboratory protocols in response.

In 1994, Janet Reno appointed Robert Fiske special counsel to investigate Bill Clinton's involvement in Whitewater, a controversy stemming from Clinton's business dealings during his time as Governor of Arkansas.

Janet Reno contended she refused to turn over the documents sought because the documents would reveal prosecutor strategy in an ongoing investigation.

Janet Reno argued her actions were in defense of the principle that prosecutors should be free of political influence.

Janet Reno stated that she believed the education system in the United States needs to be improved, as there is a link between the quality of education and the crime rate.

Janet Reno believed that too much money has been diverted away from the juvenile court system and that the government should find some way to make the juvenile courts work effectively, so as to prevent problems in troubled children and adolescents before these problems are exacerbated by the time they reach adulthood.

Janet Reno was a founding member of the board of directors for the Innocence Project, a nonprofit organization which assists prisoners who may be exonerated through DNA testing, in 2004.

Janet Reno took Spanish lessons during her time as state attorney.

Janet Reno remained active after her diagnosis of Parkinson's disease in 1995; she learned inline skating in 1996.

Janet Reno was surrounded by friends and family at the end of her life, including her sister Maggy and her goddaughter.

In 2000, Janet Reno was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame.

In March 2008, Janet Reno received the Council on Litigation Management's Professionalism Award, which recognizes and commemorates an individual who has demonstrated the unique ability to lead others by example in the highest standard of their profession.

Janet Reno had a higher profile than many of her immediate predecessors.

Janet Reno appeared on the cover of Time and was the subject of a Vanity Fair profile.

Janet Reno curated a compilation of old-time American songs performed by contemporary artists called the Song of America.

Janet Reno worked with her niece's husband on the project, music producer Ed Pettersen.

Janet Reno said her goal with the project was to share music with her great-nieces and great-nephews.

In 2013, Janet Reno voiced herself for the "Dark Knight Court" episode of The Simpsons.

Janet Reno was depicted by Jane Lynch in Manhunt: Unabomber, a fictionalized account of the true story of the FBI's hunt for the Unabomber.