Ocasio-Cortez has backed public defender Tiffany Caban. (Flickr)
May 22, 2019 By Laura Hanrahan
Representative Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez endorsed public defender Tiffany Cabán earlier today in the hotly contested race for Queens District Attorney.
“New Yorkers deserve a seat at the table, and a champion who will fight to realign our priorities towards equal treatment under the law,” said Ocasio-Cortez, later adding, “We deserve a district attorney that understands that to make our community safer we help people prosper. We deserve Tiffany Cabán.”
The Democratic primary, which will take place on June 25, has seven candidates vying for the nomination.
Ocasio-Cortez, who says she has been following the race closely, gave her endorsement to the candidate whose platform most resembles her own.
Cabán, 31, has pledged to bring progressive reforms to the DA’s office, including prosecuting abusive landlords and targeting drug companies that take advantage of working-class citizens.
Cabán’s platform has centered around rehabilitation rather than detention. She is in favor of closing Rikers Island, and does not support plans to build new borough-based jails.
“As a public defender, I’ve seen firsthand how our criminal justice system oppresses and marginalizes black and brown, low-income, immigrant and LGBTQIA+ communities,” Cabán said. “I’m running to decriminalize poverty, end mass incarceration, and keep people rooted in their communities with the services they need.”
The race comes just weeks after the death of longtime District Attorney Richard A. Brown, who died on May 4 from complications related to Parkinson’s disease.
Cabán is the only public defender to have entered the race for Queens DA, but is running against many well-known Queens players. Her opponents include Queens Borough President Melinda Katz; former Deputy Chief in the Special Investigations and Prosecutions Unit of the New York Attorney General’s office Jose Nieves; lawyer Betty Lugo; City Council Member Rory Lancman; former judge and senior prosecutor Greg Lasak; and former prosecutor Mina Malik.
Prior to Ocasio-Cortez’s endorsement, Cabán had received the support of several other elected officials including State Senators Julia Salazar, Jessica Ramos, Luis Sepúlveda and Gustavo Rivera; City Council Members Jimmy Van Bramer and Brad Lander; and former New York Governor candidate Cynthia Nixon.
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25 Comments
Why NO mention that she wants to “decriminalize” sex work and favors legalization of prostitution. Because it’s “valid work.”
Why NO mention that she’s been working as a public defender in Manhattan for the past 7 years, not in Queens. Never supervised a large staff either, which is part of the DAs job.
AOC is the biggest problem the Dems have to defeating Trump. Look how Fox loves to beat up on her. She is giving Trump and Fox the talking points they need to energize their base. Stop giving her the media coverage she has not earned and focus on the moderate Dems who were the ones who actually won back the House in the last election!
New York City is quickly going down the drain. How can one expect a city such as the one we live in to function properly and safely with ideas from the likes of Ocasio-Cortez and this Caban person? What the heck is going on with people these days supporting individuals such as them? What happened to common sense?
Do you have any specific criticism besides “the heck is going on” or is that about it?
Who??
it’s in the title of the article
Caban’s main opponent worked as a lobbyist after working in city council. I personally find that rotating wheel between government and lobbying to be extremely cooercive of Democracy. Regardless of what one thinks about AOC, at least Caban did honest work that really makes her qualified for this post.
Her resume seems thinner than most of the other candidates for this position. She has good energy and nothing against the “honest work” of public defenders, but she needs more experience, especially management experience. Like Cynthia Nixon, seems like an overreach to run for this job.
More experience? She has more experience than the president when he was elected.
Who?
Is this the only picture we have with her? My God this is like the only place she’s been seen!
Newspapers have to buy stock photographs or pay photographers, no reason to spend money to have a slightly different angle.
Maybe you can take a lunch break from the nursing home and go take some pictures to send to Astoria Post?
Have to admit it’s not the most flattering shot of AOC. Wonder if AOC will actively campaign with the candidate?
But hey, keep us entertained by inventing more sarcastic screen names.
So Cabán wants Riker’s Island closed but doesn’t support the plan to build smaller
borough-based jails? So we book ’em and turn ’em loose? Yeah, I’m sure they’ll keep out of trouble and show up for their court date. NOT!
Judge Lasak is the only qualified candidate in this race.
I’m sorry but lasak is full of it like Crowley is. Comfort is a drug, give these politicians a consistent job, they do nothing, once challenged they promise the same stuff the new ambitious people say dem or rep. The difference is they should have been doing what the ambitious people say while in office. Comfort is where ambition dies.
In summary no to lasak he lost his passion.
Lasak is no politician. He is known politically, yes, because that is the nature of the judiciary. I don’t know of the comfort of which you speak since he resigned his secure judgeship to run for D.A. Judge Lasak was born in Queens, has worked his way up though the D.A.’s Office all the way to Supreme Court and he never left Queens like Crowley did. Court employees and law enforcement agree that he is the man for the job. That’s why he has been endorsed by EVERY law enforcement union in the city, ALL three law enforcement court unions and also the DC-37 local that represents civilian court employees. He is the man for the job and Queens would be lucky to have him.
I just don’t get Ocasio-Cortez, what is the big deal? She’s inexperienced and certainly immature, and hasn’t really done anything, but yet she receives constant publicity. Why? Her biggest claim to fame is the New Green Deal, which has gone nowhere. She said that the government should pay people who are unwilling to work. Really! That was quickly removed once it was publicized. Listen to her sometime, you’ll see that half the time she really doesn’t understand what she is talking about. She has something in common with Trump, in that both of them know how to really bullsh*t people into believing in them. Maybe that’s all in takes anymore.
If you think you need any political experience to hold office, you forgot who’s president.
If it wasn’t her it would have been someone else. The internet and cable news need to be constantly fed. To have someone or something to fill up the space and time. Someone or something to be the topic, to draw people’s attention . Take that and her need and craving for publicity, that’s why she is where she is. It doesn’t matter if she has experience or has accomplished anything. All that matters is that she’s controversial and people respond.
You’re right about one thing: you just don’t get Ocasio-Cortez. But thanks for your worthless disinformation.
Ocasio-Cortez has done more in six months than Crowley did in 20 years – she is a fighter . At least she was legitimately elected – Crowley was appointed by the machine -and never won an election on his own merits – he is not smart , or articulate – just sat there using the office to get his family and friends rich .
At least AOC fights !
Tiffany is absolutely the right person to endorse for DA. The old approaches focused on punishment and retribution have just served to fuel recidivism and promote injustice. Looking forward to voting for Tiffany Caban and thrilled the Congresswoman has endorsed her.
So she’s in favor of closing Rikers but doesn’t support community-based jails. Seriously, how does this make our communities safer? By not arresting criminals?
She is for closing rikers and no borough jails?! How can she be for both?! Where are criminals going then?