BOSTON, May 13, 2016—Suffolk County District Attorney Daniel F. Conley’s chief trial counsel was recognized with a prestigious statewide honor at the Massachusetts Prosecutors Conference last night.

Assistant District Attorney John P. Pappas was presented with the William C. O’Malley Prosecutor of the Year award, named for the longtime Plymouth County district attorney who served as chairman of the board of the American Prosecutors Research Institute and president of the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association and National District Attorneys Association.

The O’Malley award “recognizes the special combination of talents embodied in a truly outstanding prosecutor:  extraordinary courtroom advocacy skills; a gift for mentoring new prosecutors; compassion for victims; and dedication to the highest standards of professionalism in investigations and in all dealings with defense counsel, the judiciary and the public at large,” according to the Massachusetts District Attorneys Association.

Conley acknowledged that Pappas was best known for his successful prosecution last year in the 2013 kidnapping, robbery, and murder of Amy Lord, but recounted a series of other case highlights from early in Pappas’ career: the beating and stabbing of a Boston Celtics player at a downtown nightclub in 2000; the brutal attack by two siblings on four friends, one of them literally eviscerated, at the 2001 St. Patrick’s Day parade; and the death of off-duty police officer Sean Waters and grievous injuries to two women in a horrific drunk-driving crash later that same year.

“Each case was more challenging than the last, with intricate fact patterns and challenging witnesses,” Conley said during his introduction. “But all of them demonstrated John’s ability to unify many disparate details into one big picture – and to marshal the facts and evidence allowing juries to find the truth. With each case, he drew from the experience to become an increasingly talented, sophisticated prosecutor and leader.”

In more recent years, Pappas successfully prosecuted the executions of Julio Ceus and Natalie Sumner during a robbery in a Brighton apartment; the murder of 16-year-old DeAndre Barboza on a Dorchester street corner; the assassination of 15-year-old Soheil Turner as the boy waited for a bus to school; and the double murders of Billie Marie Kee and Kevin Thomas in Hyde Park and Angel Acevedo and Jenret Appleberry in Chelsea.

“Receiving this award is an incredible honor,” Pappas said at the ceremony. “I want to thank everyone I’ve been so fortunate to work with over the years, especially District Attorney Conley and our victim-witness advocates, civilian investigators, and support staff. In so many cases, our success in the courtroom would not have been possible without their hard work and dedication.”

Pappas began his career as a prosecutor in 1994 as a line assistant district attorney in the Boston Municipal Court and went on to be the supervising ADA in East Boston District Court. In 1997, he was promoted to a Superior Court trial team then known as the General Felony Unit, with subsequent placements in the Gang Unit, Senior Trial Unit, and Homicide Unit. In 2011, Conley named him chief trial counsel, providing legal and tactical guidance to Superior Court trial teams in investigative, grand jury, and trial matters. He continues to shoulder a full caseload of homicides and death investigations.

“It takes knowledge, skill, and experience to become a great trial lawyer,” Conley said, “but it takes the additional qualities of compassion, respect, and decency to become a great prosecutor. And it’s my great pleasure and pride to say that John Pappas brings all of these qualities to the table.”

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All defendants are presumed innocent unless proven guilty beyond a reasonable doubt