Topic: Mary Beth Buchanan

Mary Beth Buchanan, born Mary Beth Kotcella, (born July 25, 1963), is the United States Attorney for the Western District of Pennsylvania. She was nominated by George W. Bush on September 5, 2001, and confirmed by the United States Senate on September 14, 2001. Mary Beth Buchanan is the first woman and youngest person ever in Pennsylvania's history to be appointed to this position, and she has been viewed by some, such as former U.S. Attorney General Richard Thornburgh and former U.S. Attorney Fred Thieman, as one of the more controversial U.S. Attorneys in the history of Pennsylvania. Under Attorneys General John Ashcroft and Alberto Gonzales, Mary Beth Buchanan has continuously held two key Justice Department posts, splitting time between Washington and Pittsburgh up until her resignation as Acting Director of the Department of Justice's Office on Violence Against Women in December 2007.

Mary Beth Buchanan is a native of Roscoe, Pennsylvania. She is a 1984 graduate of California University of Pennsylvania, and a 1987 graduate of the University of Pittsburgh School of Law. Her resume does not indicate any particular class rank standing, law review experience or further graduate study beyond the juris doctorate level. Her second husband, Thomas C. Buchanan, whom she married after divorcing her first husband, is the grandson of the founder of the Buchanan Ingersoll law firm. The firm, in which he is a partner, is now called Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney.

Mary Beth Buchanan worked temporarily as an associate at Strassburger McKenna Gutnick & Potter after her 1987 law school graduation.