Continuing what I did last time with the @CardozoLaw forum, I'll set out one or two choice quotes from tonight's @ColorOfChange #ManhattanDA forum. Unlike last time, I'll inject a little commentary where appropriate. /1 https://twitter.com/ColorOfChange/status/1354573162307088385

. @LizCrotty2021: "If in 21 years I have learned anything, it's that there are no absolutes." Re cops, "You have to look at each & every case-what are the police officers doing, what are [they] saying? If you can't prove your case bc of that...officer, you should dismiss." /2

. @AMDanQuart: Re hiring new ADAs, criticized "Right now the DA's office recruits from across the country, looking for the best & brightest." Says he *won't* do that & will find ADAs only in NY. (Office currently gets *most* from NY, but why not national?? /3

1st time I've heard "best & brightest" used as a negative. There's more from Quart: re firings, "Changes have to go deep & have to go beyond the leadership team," using Philadelphia as rule of thumb, says he'll fire about *158* Manhattan ADAs. So much for "best & brightest"! /4

. @TaliFarhadian: re transparency of activities, "We are modernizing & bringing our offices into the 21st century." Asked to commit to drop a particular pending case, "Can't make a commitment about an open case in the Manhattan DA's office." Correct (no candidate disagreed). /5

. @lucylang: "There is no doubt the legacy of white supremacy has informed the development of prosecution in this country." Also, “I will use conspiracy laws to prosecute kingpins who bring poison into our communities.” /6

. @DianaJFlorence: Re #defundthepolice, "I don't believe in that word." Commits not to do gang prosecutions that are "based on innuendo or Facebook posts." Florence was in the DA's office when social media evidence was used, and sometimes solved murder conspiracies. /7

. @TahanieNYC: "The Manhattan DA's problem is that it overcharges felonies like it's giving out candy." Says she has "forced [agencies like NYPD] to change their ideology & culture." This last is a pretty grandiose & unlikely claim. /8

Also Aboushi: "I'm going to replace bureau chiefs and supervisors who are looking to make charges stick." Huh? God forbid a #prosecutor should try to sustain criminal charges. /9

. @AlvinBraggNYC: re sentencing, "I'm going to have a default position that the lowest end of the range" will govern. Betrays his fed background-not NYS lingo. Also, "I'm not going to be using evidence developed by the NYPD if it's part of their gang database." /10

. @elizaorlins: need to stop prosecuting "almost all misdemeanors," but hasn't yet said which would stay. I sure hope domestic violence still gets prosecuted. Plus my local @DuaneReade manager was practically in tears when he told me about brazen shoplifting during pandemic. /11

I hope that's not the misdemeanor Orlins means. Or the man who exposes himself to girls on the subway. Or the stalker. Or the breast groper. Or commercial bribery. On and on - you get the point. Looking forward to her list of misdemeanors she'll tell NY'ers she won't handle. /12

+ Orlins: "I've seen the devastating effects of its culture of prosecutorial misconduct & mismanagement." Says she knows which chiefs'll be in line w her vision & which won't, & plans to "staff [office] w public defenders" & others. No comment except strenuous disagreement. /end