Ritz sworn in as US Attorney for Western District

Memphis, TN – Kevin G. Ritz was sworn in on September 28, 2022, as United States Attorney for the Western District of Tennessee. In a brief ceremony at the federal courthouse in Memphis, Chief U.S. District Court Judge S. Thomas Anderson administered the oath of office, in front of Ritz’s family and U.S. Attorney’s Office colleagues.
Ritz was nominated by President Joe Biden on July 29, 2022, and he was unanimously confirmed by the United States Senate on September 22, 2022.
As United States Attorney, Kevin is the chief federal law enforcement officer in West Tennessee.
Ritz stated: “It is an honor to lead the office where I have worked for 17 years. I’ve dedicated my career to serving the United States, and I can’t wait to start this next chapter. I want to thank President Biden for nominating me, the Senate for confirming me, and Congressman Cohen for recommending me for this position.”
“I look forward to working with my colleagues and our partners to promote and defend the interests of our country throughout the 22 counties of West Tennessee. We have a lot of work to do, and I’m ready to get going.”
Kevin G. Ritz is a Memphian who has dedicated his entire career to federal public service.
He has been an Assistant United States Attorney in the United States Attorney’s Office for the Western District of Tennessee since 2005. He started in the narcotics unit prosecuting drug, firearm,robbery, carjacking, and other offenses. He later held various leadership positions in the office, including serving as Appellate Chief and Special Counsel for over a decade.
He has written more than 200 appellate briefs and argued 37 cases in the federal courts of appeals.
Ritz has twice served on the Department of Justice’s Appellate Chiefs Working Group. From 2020 to 2021, he was the Chair of the Tennessee Bar Association’s Appellate Practice Section, and in 2017 Ritz was the President of the Federal Bar Association’s Memphis Chapter. From 2008 to 2016, Ritz was an Adjunct Professor at the University of Memphis Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law.
Before his tenure in the U.S. Attorney’s Office, Ritz clerked for Judge Julia S. Gibbons of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit.
Between college and law school, Mr. Ritz worked for the United States Department of State.
Mr. Ritz received his J.D. from the University of Virginia, his M.S. in Foreign Service from Georgetown University, and his B.A. with High Distinction from the University of Virginia, where he was a Jefferson
Scholar. He is a product of Memphis City Schools and graduated from White Station High School. He and his family live in midtown Memphis.