Good morning! I’m Mackenzie Wilson, but my friends and colleagues at the Tucson District Attorney’s Office call me Mack. My work days get started at 5:45. My alarm goes off at the same time every day, and my mornings are highly structured. The fewer choices I have to make on a daily basis, the better. My breakfast and lunch are both ready to go from last night. Overnight oats with blueberries and a salad with turkey and strawberries, respectively. My bag is packed and by the door. I have pre-set outfits for every day of the week, and they vary depending on whether I’m in trial or not. Today, I’m not in trial, so Monday morning means a black suit with a cornflower blue Oxford shirt.

I usually make it to my desk at the DA’s office by 7:30, and dive straight into my caseload of pre-trial cases, cases that need to be charged, and investigations. I’ve been with the office about seven years, and have been in the Sex Crimes unit for five. Dealing with child molest and rape cases all day gets pretty grim, but I love my job. Nothing gives me more satisfaction than the knowledge that I’m helping to make my city safer. Getting justice for victims, helping them recover from trauma, and making sure perpetrators are held responsible for their actions—those things make the dark parts of the work worthwhile.

Aside from the work, I’ve found my community through this job. My best friend is Jess Lafayette, also a prosecutor in Sex Crimes. When I started in the unit, she took me under her wing. She shaped me into the prosecutor I am today, and became my closest confidant in the process. And then there’s Anna Lapin, a brilliant forensic psychologist, a close friend, and my ex-girlfriend. Jess and Anna have never exactly seen eye to eye, but I think they’re on their way to a tentative peace. I hope.

These days, I’ve got two cases that take most of my attention. I’ve got the Schyanne Anderson case—an investigation into what happened to a girl who was found wandering the streets some distance from home, suffering from post-traumatic mutism. I’ve also got a series of home invasions, up in the Foothills neighborhood. Not far from where I live, actually. We think that guy is a rapist waiting to happen, but so far he’s been outsmarting police and the female homeowners who wake up to find him watching them sleep. Those reports keep piling up, but we have no solid leads on the guy’s identity.

When I’m not in trial, I usually end my work days around six, and I don’t do well with too much free time. Jess and I like to hike, and Tucson has lots of beautiful trails in the mountains around town. I also love live theater, live music, and every year I try to see as many movies on the Oscar nominations list as possible. Anna and I make it to our favorite bar a couple times a month, or even just relax with a six-pack and a beautiful Arizona sunset.

It’s a busy life, but I love it! Thanks for tagging along for the day—it reminded me of when I had an intern! I should probably ask if I can resuscitate that program. Make an intern hold an anatomical diagram one time and they never let me forget it. . .

Steadying The Ark
Genre: Suspense
Release: March 2022
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While Assistant District Attorney Mack Wilson’s days are devoted to arguing sex crime cases in the courtroom, her evenings are troubled by a series of disturbing incidents in her neighborhood.

As the media madness swirls around her trial, evidence that an unknown stalker is watching her just a little too closely begins to mount. Mack finds herself seeking help from the one person she never thought she would—ex-girlfriend Anna Lapin.

When Mack is caught in a deadly situation, the only thing that might save the confident prosecutor is her brilliant analytical mind, her instinct for self-preservation and the uncanny instincts of the woman she once loved.

Meet the author
Rebecca K. Jones is a career prosecutor and the author of the new book Steadying the Ark. Inspired by her career handling sex crimes cases, Steadying the Ark follows the twists and turns of a high-profile case and the private lives of the female characters pursuing justice. A proud graduate of Choate Rosemary Hall, Middlebury College, and the University of Arizona James E. Rogers College of Law, Rebecca K. Jones now lives in Phoenix with her girlfriend and dogs. This is her first novel.

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