BOSTON - Today, Governor Maura T. Healey nominated Sarah Kennedy and Edward Krippendorf to the District Court. The nominees will now continue forward to the Governor’s Council for confirmation.  

“Sarah and Edward are two distinguished attorneys who will make excellent additions to the District Court,” said Governor Healey. “They have dedicated their careers to the law and I look forward to working with the Governor’s Council to confirm their nominations." 

“We thank the Governor’s Council for their work considering the Governor’s judicial nominees. We are hopeful that Sarah and Edward will be able to continue their public service on the District Court bench,” said Lieutenant Governor Driscoll.  

The District Court Department hears a wide range of criminal, civil, housing, juvenile, mental health, and other types of cases. District Court criminal jurisdiction extends to all felonies punishable by a sentence up to five years, and many other specific felonies with greater potential penalties, all misdemeanors, and all violations of city and town ordinances and by-laws. In civil matters, the District Court hears cases in which the damages are not likely to be more than $50,000 and small claims cases up to $7,000. The District Court is located in 62 courts across the state. 

For more information about the District Court, visit their homepage.  

About Sarah Kennedy 

Sarah Kennedy currently serves as an Assistant Clerk Magistrate in the Dorchester Division of the Boston Municipal Court, a position she has held since 2021. Attorney Kennedy is responsible for conducting hearings for criminal complaints, assisting judges with courtroom sessions, and helping staff, litigants and members of the public with navigating the court system. Prior to that, she served as both a prosecutor for the Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and a defense attorney for the Committee for Public Counsel Services. She has a bachelor’s from Boston College and a J.D. from Suffolk University Law School and she lives in Waltham with her wife and children. 

About Edward (Ed) Krippendorf, Jr.  

Ed Krippendorf is an accomplished and well-respected trial attorney with broad civil and criminal experience. Attorney Krippendorf began his career as a criminal investigator in the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office before attending New England School of Law. After graduating *** laude, Attorney Krippendorf worked as an Assistant District Attorney in Suffolk County for eight years, prosecuting cases in District, Boston Municipal, and Superior Courts. For the last three years in the DA's Office, he tried complicated Superior Court cases while assigned to the Senior Trial and Homicide Units. Attorney Krippendorf now serves as a partner at Eisenstadt Krippendorf Group in Westwood, MA representing private and indigent criminal defendants as well as handling a broad array of civil and administrative matters in a variety of courts. He also volunteers as a Court Conciliator for the Norfolk County Probate and Family Court. He has a B.S. from Salem State College and a J.D. from New England School of Law. He lives in Braintree with his wife and children.