Lawyers

Veteran Wayne County prosecutor Athina Siringas dies of most cancers

In the courtroom, Athina Siringas was a force to be reckoned with, a fierce and fearless advocate for crime victims and their families who relied on the passionate and focused prosecutor to deliver them justice — which she did for two decades.

Siringas, a longtime assistant prosecutor at the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office who put away killers and rapists and also handled the historic perjury case of former Detroit Mayor Kwame Kilpatrick, died Friday following a long battle with ovarian cancer.  She was 63.

At her bedside were her husband and daughter, Kalli Siringas, who wants the world to remember her mother as a generous, loving and driven woman who dedicated her life to helping others. Her mom worked tirelessly up until the end, she said, noting Athina Siringas took work calls from her bed during her illness, passionately discussing criminal cases with police officers and inquiring about the status of various cases.

“She never wanted to focus on her illness, she was only concerned with life and living,” Kalli Siringas said through tears. “She never wanted to stop working …  she didn’t know how to do that. She loved her work. That was a part of her well-being.”

Assistant Wayne County Prosecutor Athina Siringas, 63, pictured left, poses in this 2021 photo with her daughter, Kalli.  The veteran prosecutor died Friday, Dec. 10, after a long battle with ovarian cancer.

Siringas was the chief of the Special Prosecutions Divisions, which included  the homicide and major drug units, community prosecutions and violent crimes. She joined the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office in 2001, when Mayor Mike Duggan was the prosecutor, and quickly rose through the ranks.

“There are people who come into your life from time to time that from the moment you meet them they will have significant impact. Athina was definitely one of them,” Wayne County Prosecutor Kym Worthy said in a statement Friday. “She was the epitome of a strong, successful woman: smart, opinionated, passionate, principled and fearless.”

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