Former colleagues Nnejii, Kavanagh seek Ulster County District Attorney post in hotly contested race – Daily Freeman
KINGSTON, N.Y. —Two former colleagues are squaring off to become Ulster County’s next district attorney in one of the most hotly contested races in the county.
Chief Assistant District attorney Emmanuel Nneji and former Chief Assistant District attorney Michael Kavanagh are running for the office now held by District attorney David Clegg, who is not running for a second term four-year term in the office.
Nneji is a Democrat running on the Democratic and Working Families party lines.
Kavanagh was a registered Republican but is now not affiliated with any political party. He is running on the GOP and Conservative lines. In 2019, he lost his bid for the office to Clegg by 78 votes.
The race has become bitter at times, with both men accusing one another and the district attorneys they worked under of mismanaging the office and creating a hostile work environment.
attorney Mike Kavanagh speaks at the Ulster County Regional Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Tuesday morning, Sept. 26, 2023. (Tania Barricklo/Daily Freeman)” width=”199″ height=”280″ data-sizes=”auto” src=”https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-mike-kavanagh-head.jpg?fit=620%2C9999px&ssl=1″ data-attachment-id=”1067262″ srcset=”https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-mike-kavanagh-head.jpg?fit=620%2C9999px&ssl=1 620w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-mike-kavanagh-head.jpg?fit=780%2C9999px&ssl=1 780w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-mike-kavanagh-head.jpg?fit=810%2C9999px&ssl=1 810w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-mike-kavanagh-head.jpg?fit=1280%2C9999px&ssl=1 1280w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-mike-kavanagh-head.jpg?fit=1860%2C9999px&ssl=1 1860w”/>Mike Kavanagh (Freeman, file)
In a statement to the Freeman, Kavanagh said the top issues specific to the Ulster County District attorney’s Office include public safety, gun violence combatting the opioid epidemic and holding violent criminals accountable for their actions.
Kavanagh has been critical of the Clegg administration and of Nneji’s record as one of the most senior assistant district attorneys in the office, noting that under Clegg’s administration, the office has had dozens of cases dismissed because it failed to meet state-mandated deadlines for failure to prosecute and has lost high profile murder cases.
“We have seen too many violent offenders, including alleged murderers, avoid any consequences because the current administration has failed to successfully prosecute them,” he stated. “Dozens of cases have been reduced or completely dismissed for failure to prosecute, resulting in the general public and local law enforcement agencies losing confidence in this District attorney’s Office.”
“I’ve never lost a murder case in my entire career,” Kavanagh said.
Kavanagh said if elected he would bring back the bevy of former assistant district attorneys who left the office “out of dissatisfaction with the current administration.”
“Their skills would be utilized to hold serious offenders accountable and to train the many talented young attorneys who currently work there and show tremendous promise.”
Kavanagh was a prosecutor for more than 20 years and served briefly as acting district attorney during a recount of the 2019 election. He is currently an attorney with the law firm Mainetti & Mainetti PC, in Kingston and serves as an assistant public defender in the Ulster County Public Defender’s Office.
A Saugerties resident, Kavanagh graduated from Onteora High School in 1989. He holds a bachelor’s degree in psychology and a law degree from Fordham University.
He and his wife Jennifer have two teenage children.
attorney Emmanuel Nneji speaks at the Ulster County Regional Chamber of Commerce Breakfast Tuesday morning, Sept. 26, 2023. (Tania Barricklo/Daily Freeman)” width=”325″ height=”229″ data-sizes=”auto” src=”https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-chamber-nneji.jpg?fit=620%2C9999px&ssl=1″ data-attachment-id=”1067257″ srcset=”https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-chamber-nneji.jpg?fit=620%2C9999px&ssl=1 620w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-chamber-nneji.jpg?fit=780%2C9999px&ssl=1 780w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-chamber-nneji.jpg?fit=810%2C9999px&ssl=1 810w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-chamber-nneji.jpg?fit=1280%2C9999px&ssl=1 1280w,https://i0.wp.com/www.dailyfreeman.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/09/DFN-L-092623-chamber-nneji.jpg?fit=1860%2C9999px&ssl=1 1860w”/>Emmanuel Nneji (Freeman, file)
Nneji has accused Kavanagh of distorting the facts, deceiving voters, and defaming public servants. He also blamed Kavanagh for the failures in the Clegg administration, saying it was up to Kavanagh to establish the programs and protocols the office was to follow in order to adhere to new state-mandated deadlines.
He said he would “vigorously prosecute violent crimes across the board,” but would “deliver justice with compassion” and would use his discretion in deciding how to cases of those who commit nonviolent crimes.
“Tackling violent crime is essential to keep our communities safe, and violent criminals will be held accountable to the fullest extent of the law,” Nneji wrote in a statement to the Freeman.
Nneji also said he would work with youth in an effort to prevent crime before it happens and said he would make as a priority to protect seniors from becoming targets of scammers like rogue home improvement contractors and in-home caregivers. He said he would work with the Ulster County Office for the Aging and the Consumer Fraud Department to convene “Ask the DA” sessions to educate the community about current scams circulating in the community.
He also said he would continue efforts to diversify the office to better reflect the community it serves.
Nneji is a native of Nigeria who immigrated to the United States and Ulster County after he graduated high school in 1978. He holds a bachelor’s degree from SUNY New Paltz and in 1989 earned his law degree from SUNY Buffalo.
He has been a prosecutor for more than 32 years, both in the Ulster County District attorney’s Office and in the state attorney General’s Office.
A Kingston resident, Nneji has two teenage children.
Early voting begins on Oct. 28. Election Day is Nov. 7.
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