ST. PAUL, Minn. (AP) — John Choi has been sworn in as Ramsey County Attorney, becoming the first Asian-American county attorney in Minnesota.

According to the Ramsey County Attorney’s Office, Choi is also the first Korean-American to hold a county attorney’s post nationwide.

After his swearing-in on Tuesday, Choi said his family came to the U.S. from South Korea in 1973, when he was 3 years old.

He says his family lived in low-income housing in St. Paul, and both of his parents worked. They came to the U.S. looking for a better life, and never thought their son would be elected county attorney. He says it shows “what a great country this is.”

Among other things, Choi’s office has responsibility for all felony adult prosecutions and all juvenile prosecutions in Ramsey County.

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