Maggy Krell

Maggy Krell is a legal trailblazer who has taken on impactful cases as a criminal prosecutor and human rights lawyer. 

Krell was a prosecutor for 15 years, serving as Supervising Deputy Attorney General in California and cross-designated as a Special Assistant United States Attorney.  Krell prosecuted high-profile cases including murder, organized crime, human trafficking, domestic violence and white-collar offenses. 

Some of Krell’s most notable accomplishments stem from her tireless efforts to combat human trafficking and protect and empower survivors, including her ground-breaking prosecution of the sex-trafficking website, Backpage.com and her pro-bono representation of survivors while in private practice. She has received many accolades for her work, including the Hope award from the National Center for Missing & Exploited Children in 2022 and the Anti-Defamation League’s Sherwood Prize for Combating Hate and Bigotry in 2016.    

Krell also served as Chief Legal Counsel for Planned Parenthood Affiliates of California where she fought to protect and expand reproductive rights and access to healthcare. Her human rights work also included providing pro-bono representation to refugee families who were separated at the Mexico-Texas border in 2018.  

Krell has frequently been relied on by media as a legal expert on sexual abuse, human trafficking, and the Communications Decency Act and has published columns in the Washington Post and NBC News. She recently released her own book, Taking Down Backpage via New York University Press.

Krell currently serves as Special Advisor to the California Attorney General. She lives in Sacramento with her family.