By Doug La Rocque
Before a packed house at RPI’s Chapel and Cultural Center, Rensselaer County District Attorney, Republican Joel Abelove and his challenger, Democrat Mary Pat Donnelly, traded jabs in what appears to be the only debate that will take place between the pair prior to Election Day.
The event was sponsored by the League of Women Voters.
The incumbent hammered on what he called Ms. Donnelly’s lack of experience as a prosecutor in New York State, and cited his 23 years of experience in county and state courts, as well as in the Army’s Judge Advocate General Corps. He contends her previous statements that her time on the bench as a judge has helped qualify her for the job, simply are not true, likening it to his daughter’s love of the television program “Law and Order” making her qualified to be District Attorney. It should be noted that Ms. Donnelly did work as a prosecutor in Vermont.
For her part, Ms. Donnelly sounded the bell on ethics, saying “I have not been a prosecutor, but I have also not been investigated and indicted by a Grand Jury.” She was referring to three charges brought against Mr. Abelove following an Attorney General’s investigation into his handling of the shooting by Troy police of a DWI suspect in April 2016. A Supreme Court judge dismissed the indictment, which is under appeal by the Attorney General’s office.
Other issues discussed included conviction rates, staff turnover and the use of forfeiture funds.