TONYA W. LUPINACCI is special counsel at Pietragallo Gordon Alfano Bosick & Raspanti, LLP and is a member of the Employment & Labor, and Government Enforcement, Compliance, & White Collar Litigation Practice Groups.

Ms. Lupinacci previously served as the Assistant Chief of Trials of the Firearms and Narcotics divisions in the Montgomery County District Attorney’s Office until August 2020 when she decided to pursue a path in higher education and law and joined Saint Joseph’s University’s Center for Addiction and Recovery Education (CARE) as an attorney consultant. In August 2021 she also joined Immaculata University’s Department of Civic Engagement and taught criminology and related courses, where she also serves as a legal mentor to pre-law undergraduate students.

She is a current doctoral student pursuing her Ed.D. in higher education, a program for transformational leaders with a focus on Title IX and other related regulatory laws that impact college campuses. At the Montgomery County District Attorney’s office, where she spent 17 years of her professional career, Ms. Lupinacci served as Assistant Chief of Trials and handled all aspects of the District Attorney’s prosecution of violent drug and firearm offenders including the prosecution of homicide cases. She served as captain of the Narcotics Unit from 2008-2012. She worked on wiretap investigations and prosecutions and handled multiple drug prosecutions.

Her experience includes the prosecution of numerous wiretap cases involving large-scale narcotic rings and corrupt organizations. She has prosecuted multiple wiretap jury trials resulting in Guilty verdicts. Ms. Lupinacci was appointed to lead the district attorney’s office response to the opioid epidemic and spearheaded the opioid grand jury investigation which resulted in a comprehensive report and recommendations that was released in May 2017.

Ms. Lupinacci is a frequent presenter on several subjects involving innovative prosecution solutions, trial practice, opioid and homicide investigations, first responders’ response to the opioid epidemic as well as continuing legal education courses. She has taught courses for the Pennsylvania District Attorney’s Institute, Aequitas Champions of Justice Resource Center, Pennsylvania State Police, and the Montgomery County Drug Task Force. Before going to the District Attorney’s office, Ms. Lupinacci was an associate at a products liability civil defense firm in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

Ms. Lupinacci currently serves as the co-chairwoman of the Women in Law committee of the Montgomery Bar Association and is an appointed member of the public safety committee of Montgomery Township, Montgomery County. She is also a member of The Forum of Executive Women, a network for women in the Greater Philadelphia region. Ms. Lupinacci received her B.A. in Journalism with honors from Indiana University of Pennsylvania. She obtained her law degree from Widener University School of Law in Wilmington, Delaware, where she was a member of the Widener Symposium Journal.

Ms. Lupinacci and her husband have three boys and she spends her time outside of the office with them at soccer, cross country, and baseball fields.