TARA JACOBS - GOVERNOR'S COUNCILLOR, DISTRICT 8

Meet Tara Jacobs, your District 8 Governor’s Councillor, serving since 2023.  Tara brings a unique focus on community engagement, transparency, accountability and accessibility to the role of Governor’s Council.  Since taking office, through active recruitment Tara has succeeded in filling judicial vacancies across Western MA with a new slate of judges who are well informed on the issues that affect our communities: trauma, substance misuse, mental health challenges, cognitive development/brain science, and the other societal struggles that lead to judicial involvement.

Her focus on improving access to justice, shifting biases from the bench that work toward dismantling systemic injustice, and increasing understanding in community about matters that impact people’s lives, including holding forums on how Executive Clemency works and encouraging those who would benefit from a pardon or commutation to apply.

Tara Jacobs represents the voice of the people in the work of the Governor’s Council: confirming judges, clerk magistrates, parole board members and the other matters that come through Council.  She is not a lawyer – she is a social psychologist and community organizer who listens and involves all voices in the work of improving our justice system. 

Justice belongs to us all, and we all deserve a justice system that is fair, unbiased, compassionate, and respectful.