The Race for Brooklyn DA
The race is on here in Brooklyn for the job of District Attorney, and while many have thrown their hats into the ring the best candidate by a country mile is Eric Gonzalez.
Eric served under Ken Thompson, who died suddenly in office last year. Ken brought a fresh perspective to the office after years under Charles Hynes. Hynes himself came to the office as something of an outsider at a time when crime was epidemic. Under Hynes crime rates were reduced and Brooklyn like the rest of New York City began a new era in which quality of life improved for many. Hynes hired me in 1996 and supported me throughout my time as his assistant, but our relationship ended badly upon the publication of my first book.
While under Hynes the office continued to serve its essential purpose — the prosecution of crime — with professionalism, Hynes and his administration became mired in scandal after scandal, which took away from the good work of his legal staff. Ken Thompson took office promising to set the house in order and to set a new vision for a 21st century prosecutor’s office. He had begun this work before he died.
One of Ken’s top lieutenants was Eric Gonzalez, to whom Ken passed the torch. My support for Eric, however, is not based simply upon Ken’s high opinion of him. Rather, I support Eric because he is the best in a field of candidates who have thrown in their hats. I support Eric because the job chose him, not the other way around. He is our Mr. Smith, whose qualifications for the job are listed on his resume, not on his rolodex.
Political novice though the may be, Eric has served 20 years as a career prosecutor in Brooklyn in myriad capacities. Neither Ken Thompson nor Charles Hynes worked in the Brooklyn DA’s Office before they took it’s reins, so with Eric we will at last have a District Attorney who really knows the office he is running. More, Eric is a Brooklyn guy through and through. He has lived through the worst period in our recent history — the crack epidemic and the attendant soaring crime rates and ruination of so many lives — so he knows well what he is protecting against every day he goes to work.
As a Brooklyn resident, I support Eric because I know he will continue to keep our streets safe. But as a criminal defense attorney I can also support Eric because I know he will enforce the law fairly and without prejudice or politics, and he will encourage an atmosphere in his office in which every criminal defendant is treated as an individual.
Support Eric here: www.ericgonzalez.com
