City Member Vincent Gentile (D-Bay Ridge, Dyker Heights, Bensonhurst, Bath Beach) yesterday officially announced his candidacy for Brooklyn District Attorney, noting that as the only candidate thus far not connected to former DA Charles Hynes, he is best suited to carry on the late DA Ken Thompson‘s legacy to meet out fair and equal justice.
Hynes’ rein and legacy as DA has been marred by a series of some 20 wrongful convictions which Thompson overturned in his short tenure before he died from cancer last October. Additionally, Hynes’ office allegedly “looked the other way” in a number of alleged cases of sexual abuse within the Hasidic community.
“I am the only candidate who can effectively apply objectivity, and without fear or favor, deliver justice for the residents of Brooklyn,’ said Gentile. “That makes me the best person to carry on that important legacy that Ken Thompson left us.”
Gentile was born into an Italian-American family in Bay Ridge and graduated from Fort Hamilton High School. He went on to receive a B.A. in Government from Cornell University and a J.D. from Fordham University School of Law. He went on to serving 11 years as a prosecutor in Queens under former Queens DA Richard A. Brown, serving in the Special Victim’s Bureau, and the Major Case Narcotics Bureau.
Gentile was elected to the State Senate 1996, and served three terms before losing to current State Sen. Marty Golden in 2002. However, he won the City Council seat in 2005 and is currently term-limited.
Gentile said if elected he looks to extend Thompson’s nationally renowned Conviction Review Unit and the procurement of funds for urban programming to deter youth from entering the criminal justice system.
“The first job of a DA is to keep people safe and give people hope,” said Gentile. “I want to hit the ground running on day one to stem the tide of the City’s opioid epidemic, work relentlessly to keep illegal guns off our streets, and to expand the scope of protecting seniors through the creation of an Elder Abuse & Fraud Prevention Unit.”
Gentile said as Brooklyn District Attorney, he wants to think outside the box, specifically by focusing on job creation and economic development in underserved neighborhoods.
“In doing so, I will develop more employment drives, and create stronger partnerships with small business owners, non-profits, and labor unions as well as with the Brooklyn’s burgeoning tech and artisan sectors. Simply put, job creation is one of the best ways to reduce recidivism and support at-risk youth,” he said.
Gentile joins a crowded field that includes acting District Attorney Eric Gonzalez, Pat Gatling, Ama Dwimoh, Anne Swern and Marc Fliedner – all of whom worked as assistant prosecutors under Hynes.
