Background
Rice was born in Washington, District of Columbia
Rice was born in Washington, District of Columbia
Harvard University; New York University. New York University School of Law.
She is a second cousin of former United States Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice. Early years She earned her undergraduate degree at Harvard College in 1978. In 1991, she joined the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People Legal Defense Fund and became co-director of LDF’s Los Angeles Office in 1996.
In her non-litigation work in the 1990s, Rice served as counsel to the Watts gang truce and spearheaded a statewide campaign to save equal opportunity programs.
Mayors Tom Bradley and Richard Riordan appointed Rice to the governing board of Los Angeles’ Department of Water and Power where she served as president and enacted contracting reforms and environmental advances. In 1998, Rice helped lead a successful campaign to place aggressive public school reformers on the governing board for Los Angeles’ public schools.
As a litigator, Rice has filed class action civil rights cases redressing police misconduct, race and sex discrimination and unfair public policy in transportation, probation and public housing. She filed a landmark case on behalf of the Business Riders Union that resulted in a mandate that more than $2 billion be spent to improve the Los Angeles bus system.
In 2013, Rice participated in an internal review of the Los Angeles Police Department"s firing of Christopher Dorner (who cited racism as the basis of his termination, and subsequently the reason for his shootings).
After a lengthy review of the LAPD"s firing of Christopher Dorner, Rice has concluded that the firing was justified and that Dorner"s allegations of racism were unfounded. She has also provided commentaries for National Public Radio. In 1998, the Los Angeles Times designated her one of twenty-four leaders considered the "most experienced, civic-minded and thoughtful people on the subject of Los Los Angeles".