Jessica Aber, the former U.S. attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia (EDVA), died of natural causes, the Alexandria Police Department said Tuesday its initial investigation found.
After receiving a report of an unresponsive woman on Saturday, police responded to the 900 block of Beverley Drive at 9:18 a.m. and found Aber deceased. She was 43.
"At this time, detectives have found no evidence suggesting that her death was caused by anything other than natural causes," Alexandria police said in a statement. "The investigation is ongoing, and the case will remain open until the Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) returns a final ruling on the cause and manner of death."
Aber began her service for EDVA as an assistant U.S. attorney in 2009. She served on a detailed assignment as counsel to the assistant attorney general for the Criminal Division of the Department of Justice from 2015 to 2016. She then served as the deputy chief of EDVA’s criminal division.
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Aber was nominated U.S. attorney by former President Joe Biden and unanimously confirmed by the Senate in 2021. She resigned two months ago when President Donald Trump took office.
Aber’s former colleagues are honoring her legacy.
In a post on X, Attorney General of Virginia Jason Miyares said, “I am saddened to learn of the passing of Jessica Aber, whose career of public service included US Attorney for the Eastern District of Virginia and whose work with Ceasefire Virginia saved more lives than we may ever realize.”
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Erik S. Siebert, the current U.S. attorney for EDVA, described Aber in a statement as being “unmatched as a leader, mentor, and prosecutor, and she is simply irreplaceable as a human being.”
“We remain in awe of how much she accomplished in her all too brief time in this world. Her professionalism, grace, and legal acumen set the standard,” he said. “Though we are devastated by this loss, each of us in the Eastern District of Virginia will look to her example and endeavor to live up to that standard.”
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Siebert also said Aber was a “proud Virginian” who graduated from the University of Richmond and earned her J.D. from William & Mary Law School.
“She loved EDVA and EDVA loved her back,” Siebert said. “We remain committed to her life’s work, a commitment to seeking justice, as she would have wanted.”
