Martha Mary Coakley[1] (born July 14, 1953) is an American lobbyist, lawyer, and former politician who served as Attorney General of Massachusetts from 2007 to 2015.

[1] Coakley graduated cum laude with a Bachelor of Arts from Williams College in 1975 and a Juris Doctor from Boston University School of Law in 1979.

Coakley returned to the District Attorney's office in 1989 and was appointed the Chief of the Child Abuse Prosecution Unit two years later.

Five candidates, who all lived in the same Ward 16 neighborhood, including a "thoughtful, but unknown assistant DA named Martha Coakley," entered the race.

Coakley, who oversaw the grand jury for the case, did not immediately indict Keith Winfield, a Somerville police officer.

During the Aqua Teen Hunger Force bomb scare in January 2007, Coakley was widely quoted in the press defending the reaction of Boston's emergency services.

"[15] Both of those accused of putting up the signs which caused the bomb scare were given plea bargains, received community service and apologized publicly.

[17][18] The law was signed into effect by Governor Deval Patrick on November 13, 2007, and was subsequently challenged by opponents and overturned by a unanimous decision of the Supreme Court as a violation of the First Amendment.

[25] Coakley inherited litigation of the fatal 2006 Big Dig ceiling collapse from outgoing Attorney General Tom Reilly in 2007.

[27] Coakley declined to conduct a criminal investigation of an aide to Thomas M. Menino, Mayor of Boston, for allegedly violating laws regarding the destruction of public e-mail records, describing the request as politically motivated.

The suit claims that Congress "overstepped its authority, undermined states' efforts to recognize marriages between same-sex couples, and codified an animus towards gay and lesbian people.

In a decision celebrated by civil rights advocates, the law was overturned by a federal judge after a coalition of booksellers and website publishers sued, claiming the new law was unconstitutional and would hold criminally liable anyone who operates a website containing nudity or sexual material, including subjects such as art or even health information such as pregnancy or birth control.

Federal Judge Rya W. Zobel stated that the plaintiffs demonstrated "without question" that the law violated the First Amendment by infringing on and inhibiting free speech.

[35] During Coakley's tenure as Attorney General, misconduct at Massachusetts' crime laboratories led to the reexamination of tens of thousands of drug convictions.

[38][39] How to Fix a Drug Scandal is an American true crime documentary miniseries that was released on Netflix on April 1, 2020, that was created by Erin Lee Carr, who followed the aftereffects of this notorious case.

[41] Martha Coakley finished fourth with 12% of the primary vote in her first run for office against future Boston Mayor and US Secretary of Labor Marty Walsh (33%), neighborhood activist Charles Tevnan (16%) and Edward Regal (10%).

Martha Coakley won the Democratic primary (48%) against Michael A. Sullivan (28%) and Timothy Flaherty (25%) and coasted to a 71–29% general election win against Republican Lee Johnson.

"[51] Barack Obama, in reflecting on his presidency, cited this comment as an instigating factor for Coakley's election loss, as well as a hurdle for the Patient Protection and Affordable Care Act.

[52] Coakley also referred to Red Sox star pitcher and Brown supporter Curt Schilling as "another Yankee fan," making her a target of derision.

[57][58] On September 15, 2013, WCVB-TV learned of Coakley's intention to run for the Massachusetts governorship when incumbent Democrat Deval Patrick retired in 2014.

[61] After the election, the Globe wrote that Coakley had been "redeemed, even in defeat," saying that she had been "haunted" by her failed bid for the U.S. Senate four years earlier and had been a "relentless, and frequently terrific, campaigner.

[64] In April 2019, it was announced that Coakley had taken a full-time role with electronic cigarette maker Juul on their government affairs team.