It’s not every day a law student goes to work in the nation’s Capitol Building in Washington, DC. And, it’s certainly not every day a law student interns in the Office of the General Counsel to the U.S. Senate Sergeant at Arms.
Heather Daniel, part-time JD candidate at The John Marshall Law School, was one of two law students chosen to fill this position during the summer of 2011.
She walked into the Capitol Building every day for work—“When I think about it, I’m just amazed that I got to do that,” Daniel says. She conducted legislative and case law research, and provided policy development support.
From her experience with Chicago Police Department (CPD), where she is a sergeant in the Bureau of Patrol at the 19th District, she became interested in pursuing government, policy and Constitutional law, which inspired her to enroll at John Marshall. “This [internship] was perfect,” she said. The experience researching and helping to develop policy gained Daniel more experience in intergovernmental affairs, a field she’d like to continue pursuing with CPD once she receives her law degree.
Terrance W. Gainer, a retired Chicago police lieutenant, is the current Sergeant at Arms for the Senate. Though Daniel has been at CPD more than 10 years, she never worked with Gainer.
“The people I know who did work with him speak very highly of him,” Daniel says of Gainer. “Now that I’ve had the opportunity to work for him, I understand why.”
She interacted with many under the Sergeant at Arms, but she primarily worked with alumnus Joseph Haughey (JD ’77)—also a retired CPD captain, general counsel; Brynn Rovito, assistant counsel; and the second student intern, from DePaul University College of Law. The two interns conducted research and drafted on topics including privacy policy for the Senate Sergeant at Arms Office of Information Technology; the Federal Torts Claims Act; claims against the government by federal employees, revisions to the U.S. Capital Police Board Manual of Policy and Procedures; and reviewing memorandums of understanding and documents of agreement between government agencies.
Although her internship involved a lot of legislative research; she didn’t affect legislation the same way a congressional staffer might. As part of the Sergeant at Arms staff, she helped provide administrative and logistical support for the Senate.
“The Sergeant at Arms impacts how the government functions, but not how it governs,” she says.
In her position, specifically offered to a John Marshall student, Daniel often conducted her research at the Library of Congress Law Library. She attended talks by political activist Ralph Nader and Charles Bolden, director of NASA. She met United States Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas and attended a non-argument session of the Supreme Court.
“I had the opportunity to test my skills in the real world, learn more about the law and our government, and was able to play some small role in our federal government,” Daniel says. “It’s humbling. I hope I represented the law school well.”
Daniel is expected to graduate from John Marshall in January of 2013. She received a bachelor’s degree in English Literature from the University of Chicago.
