Laura Jarrett will exit CNN to join NBC News as the network’s Senior Legal Correspondent reporting on the Justice Department and Supreme Court, the network announced Wednesday.
In the role, Jarrett will serve as the leading voice on news related to national legal law enforcement following Pete Williams’ retirement, and will appear on NBC News, MSNBC as well as NBC News NOW and NBC News Digital.
Jarrett will depart CNN after six years at the network, joining several executives and journalists who have recently made the move from CNN to NBC, including former CNN congressional correspondent Ryan Nobles, executive Rebecca Kutler and producer David Gelles, who serves as executive producer for “Meet The Press.”
While at CNN, Jarrett most recently co-anchored “Early Start” with Christine Romans beginning in January 2020, in which she provided on-air legal analysis of high profile stories of national interest, including the reversal of landmark decision Roe v. Wade, the Congressional investigations into the Jan. 6 Capitol riots, investigations into former President Donald Trump and the legal battles over COVID-19 vaccine mandates.
The veteran journalist also served as the key correspondent for high profile cases related to the entertainment industry, including the Depp-Heard trial and Alec Baldwin’s settlement with Halyna Hutchins’ family. She also covered the death of Ahmaud Arbery, Derek Chauvin’s sentencing following the killing of George Floyd,
Other notable legal cases Jarrett reported on include Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia investigation, Trump’s travel ban and family separation policy and the FBI’s investigation into Hillary Clinton’s handling of classified information.
Prior to joining CNN, Jarrett worked at a private practice where she dedicated significant time to pro bono cases, one of which aided a sex trafficking victim to use a new Illinois state law to expunge past convictions.
She graduated from Harvard Law School, where she self-published articles exploring the intersection of gender, violence and law.
Jarrett will report to Rich Greenberg, NBC News Vice President and Head of the Investigative Unit, who welcomed her to the network in a staff-wide memo, and will collaborate with NBC News’ Investigative Unit as well as the Washington Bureau’s reporting teams.
She will also work closely with Justice and National Security Correspondent Ken Dilanian, Senior Legal and Investigative Correspondent Cynthia McFadden, Investigative Correspondent Tom Winter, Homeland Security Correspondent Julia Ainsley and Supreme Court Reporter Lawrence Hurley, among others.