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To the Editor:
Over the past 18 months the news has been filled with stories that chronicle the repeated and serious failings of Putnam County District Attorney Adam Levy.
Whether it was appointing an employee to work in his Carmel office completely outside the normal recruitment process of the county; involving himself with the prosecution of an alleged rapist and paying over $100,000 for his legal defense (on a case Levy was supposedly recused — his actions in this case are a novel by themselves); verbally insulting the Westchester District Attorney’s office (calling Janet DiFiore a “coward”); or starting an ill-advised legal war with the Putnam sheriff, Levy seems to have confused his personal agenda with his elected duties. Now, Levy’s chief assistant is resigning. This is the second chief assistant to resign in less than one year. Clearly, something is seriously wrong in the Putnam District Attorney’s Office, and Adam Levy must go. We cannot be silent and simply watch as he continues to damage the reputation and integrity of the office. During my years as an assistant district attorney in Manhattan, I developed an abiding sense of respect for the essential role in our society for competent, sincere and unbiased local prosecutors.
Because Levy appears to possess none of those traits, last year I publicly demanded that he resign so that the public’s legal business can once again serve the public’s interest. Today, I again call for his resignation— and I will continue to do so. I believe other state and county officials should do the same. We need to restore integrity to our District Attorney’s Office. We need to bring law enforcement together, not tear it apart with lawsuits, resignations, mistrust and suspicions. Our residents need to know that they don’t have to wonder if it matters that they are a friend of the district attorney before they make a criminal complaint. Law enforcement is the most essential component of government. Without absolute faith in our legal system, everything else falls apart. The current situation is intolerable and an embarrassment to Putnam County. Adam Levy must resign.
Robert Tendy
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