DA: CRIME IS UP AND MANPOWER IS DOWN
MONTICELLO - District Attorney Meagan Galligan today said that "violent crime is up...it's way up" in Sullivan, as she told the County Legislature that "we need to hire more ADAs (Assistant District Attorneys) immediately."
But after her report to the Public Safety & Law Enforcement Committee, none of the legislators expressed concern or directly addressed the ADA shortage.
Galligan cited New York State Division of Criminal Justice Services data that shows felony arrests in Sullivan were up 35 percent in the first quarter of 2021 compared to 2020.
She said that her office has just five ADAs handling 5,500 open cases, including regular night court appearances each month.
While praising a new mandate that New York State Police wear body cams, Galligan added that, as a result, her office is spending an increased amount of time reviewing video from those cams for evidence. Although she expressed concern about the time needed, she added that she thinks Sullivan County law enforcement agencies should be outfitted with body cams.
Galligan made no mention of losing her most senior ADA, Rob Zangla, who is starting work this month in the County Attorney's Office under Mike McGuire, which was the latest in a string of departures from her office in recent months.
While some of those departures can be attributed to the Sullivan's low starting salary, two sources have told The SullivanTimes that there's a morale problem in Galligan's office as well. One of the sources pointed to the morale issue as the reason Zangla took a salary reduction of approximately $14,000 to leave Galligan and join McGuire.
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