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Laura Coates is a CNN Host and Senior Legal Analyst who specializes in the intersection of civil rights and criminal prosecution. A former federal prosecutor, Laura served as Assistant United States Attorney for the District of Columbia, as well as a Trial Attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the Department of Justice, specializing in the enforcement of Voting Rights throughout the United States. As a civil rights attorney, she traveled throughout the United States supervising local and national elections and led investigations into allegations of unconstitutional voting practices. In private practice, Laura was an intellectual property litigator with an expertise in First Amendment and media law. She is the bestselling author of You Have the Right…A Constitutional Guide to Policing the Police.
Laura is the host of the daily eponymous show on SiriusXM. The Laura Coates Show, which broadcasts live 3-6PM ET on the bipartisan P.O.T.U.S. channel, features her lively analysis of the trending news of the day and impactful interviews with entertainers, politicians, DC insiders and game changers on the topics of politics, pop culture and everything in between. She has also hosted a series of true crime specials for the Oxygen network.
Laura Coates is a graduate of Princeton University’s Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs, and the University of Minnesota Law School. She is a Lecturer of Law at George Washington University Law School. She resides in Washington, D.C. with her husband and two children.