Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau has decided not to run for re-election, thus ending a long era for the prosecutor. A high-ranking person in Morgenthau’s office announced the decision.
Morgenthau, 89, has been a prosecutor in New York City since the Kennedy administration, when he was appointed Manhattan’s top federal prosecutor.
“We owe much of our city’s low crime rate and safe streets to his years of great service. He will be sorely missed,” said City Council member Peter F. Vallone Jr., a former assistant to Morgenthau.
“As both a federal prosecutor and district attorney, his integrity and excellence is shown not just in his longevity and dedication, but in the results he delivered generations of New Yorkers,” Sen. Charles Schumer said in a statement.
Crocker Snyder is seen as a favorite to win the post in the November election. She issued a statement Friday wishing Morgenthau well.
“He has been a great institution for New York, and I hope he is happy in the next phase of his life,” Crocker Snyder said.