Stroock & Stroock & Lavan Hosts Forum with Manhattan D.A. Cyrus Vance Jr.

NEW YORK, Jan. 18, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- New York County District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. was the guest today in a wide-ranging conversation about New York and the D.A.'s office, at Stroock & Stroock & Lavan.  The event was led by four-time New York State Attorney General Robert Abrams, a partner at Stroock. 

District Attorney Vance discussed a number of issues that his office has been addressing, including intelligence-based prosecution that targets areas of high crime, terrorism prevention, reducing recidivism through education during incarceration, collaboration with state and federal agencies, and cybercrime, which he called "The crime scene of the 21st Century."  The Manhattan D.A.'s new Cybercrime Unit has become a national leader in this area.

The top legislative priority for the District Attorney Vance's office is DNA collection, to solve and prevent crime and exonerate the innocent.

Stroock partner Joel Cohen, a former federal and state prosecutor, participated in the discussion, which was introduced by Jerry H. Goldfeder, an election law expert and special counsel at Stroock.

"District Attorney Vance has a compelling vision for focusing on crime prevention as he moves his office forward," said Mr. Abrams.  "Today we had a first-hand look at some of the important issues that impact the safety of the city."

The event was the sixth in a series hosted by Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP recently.  The first two featured one-on-one questions and answers with Mr. Abrams and New York State Attorney General Eric Schneiderman, then with New York State Comptroller Thomas DiNapoli; the third was a forum on public corruption; the fourth featured newly elected Florida Attorney General Pam Bondi in a forum at Stroock's Miami office; and the fifth event featured New York City Public Advocate Bill de Blasio, Manhattan Borough President Scott Stringer, and former New York City Comptroller and Democratic candidate for Mayor William Thompson. 

Today's event was sponsored by Stroock's Government Relations group, which is comprised of former prosecutors, judges, and government agency officials.  The practice is led by Mr. Abrams, who also served as President of the National Association of Attorneys General, Executive Chair of New York State Attorney General Andrew Cuomo's Transition Committee and Honorary Co-Chair of Attorney General Schneiderman's Transition Committee. 

SOURCE Stroock & Stroock & Lavan