Hoovler (file): “… innovative,
results oriented, and fair …”
GOSHEN – Orange County District Attorney David Hoovler announced the publication of the Executive Summary which chronicles the accomplishments of the District Attorney’s Office in 2015. By statute the District Attorney is required to submit an Annual Report. The Executive Summary highlights portions of the Annual Report, which will be released later this month.
Among the innovations instituted by the District Attorney’s Office in 2015, which are set forth in the Executive Summary, were the creation of a Conviction Integrity Program and the creation of a Narcotics Eviction Program. The Executive Summary shows that in 2015 the felony conviction rate rose to 96%. There were 286 felony narcotics filings in 2015, a 6.3% increase from 2014. In 2015 the District Attorney’s Office prosecuted cases involving 95 illegal guns, a 63.8% increase from 2014. A record 123 Welfare Fraud cases were investigated by the District Attorney’s Office in 2015, and the Office has one of the highest welfare fraud prosecution rates in New York State. The Orange County District Attorney’s Office was sixth in New York State in recovery of fraudulently obtained unemployment benefits. District Attorney Hoovler and the office received the Dana Distributors’ 2015 Recognition Award for promoting alcohol awareness and public safety, and one of the Office’s anti-gun public service announcements earned a Bronze Summit International Award
“Our goal in 2015 was for the District Attorney’s Office to be innovative, results oriented, and fair, and I believe we largely succeeded, “ said Hoovler. “Our community prosecution model has allowed us to be responsive to the needs of the various communities in the County. Whether we are working with educators to combat truancy using our Strategic Methods Aimed at Reducing Truancy [SMART] iniative, or instituting a Narcotics Eviction Program to help communities deal with drug dealers, we have tried to be innovative in our approach to problems. With our partners in law enforcement we continued to combat illegal drugs, which continue to be the number one driver of all crimes in the County. We combat illegal narcotics not only through prosecution, but also through public service announcements and efforts to advocate for drug treatment. Our welfare fraud prosecutions continue to save the County’s taxpayers millions of dollars. I am proud that our new Conviction Integrity Program is yet one more measure we have adopted to ensure that our dispositions are fair.”
