Joanne Parrilli 6233

ll leave that for another time.

Retired Justice Joanne Parrilli grew up in Chicago as part of a large Italian family. She was encouraged by her parents to pursue a good education, and attended private Catholic school all the way through grammar school, high school, and college. She was interested in acting and considered leaving school to pursue a career in the theater, but was encouraged by a nun to finish her education. She moved to California in 1968 and worked various jobs before deciding to pursue law. She attended the University of San Francisco for law school and was part of an experimental clinic in her second year. She was fascinated by the criminal courts and decided to work in the Alameda County District Attorney's Office. She faced some resistance as a female trial lawyer, but was successful in her career and eventually became a justice on the California Court of Appeal.