PRESS RELEASE

For Immediate Release: February 2, 2005

Contact: William J. Smith (718) 556-7150
District Attorney’s Office

Andrew T. Hahn (212) 218-5554
President, AABANY

ASIAN AMERICAN BAR ASSOCIATION OF NEW YORK TO HONOR STATEN ISLAND’S DISTRICT ATTORNEY

***Donovan Honored for Commitment to Asian-American Diversity within DA’s Office***

STATEN ISLAND, NY – At a dinner to be held Thursday evening, the Office of Richmond County District Attorney Daniel M. Donovan, Jr. will be honored as “the New York City agency with the highest Asian-American diversity among its legal hiring, promotion and retention” by the Asian American Bar Association of New York at its annual banquet to be held at the Waldorf Astoria in Manhattan. The Asian American Bar Association of New York (AABANY) is a professional membership organization of attorneys concerned with issues affecting the Asian Pacific American community. Incorporated in 1980, AABANY seeks not only to encourage the professional growth of its members but also to advocate for the Asian Pacific American community.

“The Richmond County District Attorney does much more than preach diversity – he practices it in the hiring and retention of his staff,” stated Andrew T. Hahn, the President of the Asian American Bar Association of New York. “We are proud to recognize that District Attorney Donovan’s office leads the way in hiring Asian-American attorneys to serve the people of his community.”

“I am truly humbled to be selected for this honor by the Asian American Bar Association of New York,” stated District Attorney Donovan. “I am proud of the diversity of my office, including the fact that one of my very first hires was Assistant District Attorney Joe Gim, who became the first Korean-American ADA to serve on Staten Island.”

As of February 1, 2005, 9.5% of the Richmond County District Attorney’s legal staff is of Asian American ancestry. Under District Attorney Donovan’s administration, three of the first six offers made to attorneys were to Asian Americans. Of those three offers, two were accepted while one declined.

“One of the key mandates of a prosecutor’s office is to establish a relationship of trust with all members of the community it serves,” noted District Attorney Donovan. “To better serve the community, I actively sought out Korean and Hindi speakers to work in my office.”

The keynote speaker for the event is Dale Minami a partner with the law firm of Minami, Lew & Tamaki LLP in San Francisco. He is best known for his civil rights work in the landmark case of Korematsu v. United States, which vindicated Japanese Americans for refusing to obey incarceration orders during WWII, orders originally upheld by the U.S. Supreme Court.

For more information on the activities and services that the organization provides, please refer to AABANY on the web at: http://www.aabany.org

About District Attorney Donovan

District Attorney Donovan, sworn-in to office on January 1, 2004, is a native Staten Islander with over 20 years of public service. Prior to his election, he served as Staten Island’s Deputy Borough President and Chief of Staff to then-Borough President Guy V. Molinari. A graduate of St. John’s University and Fordham University School of Law, Donovan served eight years in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office.

As District Attorney, Dan Donovan has implemented innovative policies targeting crime on Staten Island. While leading the City of New York in felony conviction rate his first year in office, D.A. Donovan has launched efforts aimed at prosecuting drunk drivers, graffiti vandals and those who prey on senior citizens and children. Under Donovan’s leadership, his office has: obtained the Borough’s first indictment and arrest of a “John Doe” DNA case, filed the second bias crime indictment in New York State for a crime against the elderly, and obtained the first felony conviction in the state under Stephanie’s Law – targeting video voyeurs. In 2004, the Staten Island District Attorney’s office also led the city in the conviction and incarceration of Megan’s Law violators.

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