UNIONS: AX THE PARTY LOVIN’ BX. DA
THE PARTY may be over.
Bronx District Attorney Darcel Clark, who is accused of running an office where prosecutors have sex while on duty and get hammered at margarita parties before stumbling to court, should be removed from office, an NYPD union head demanded Tuesday.
“The governor has to do a house-cleaning at the Bronx district attorney’s office,” Sergeants Benevolent Association President Ed Mullins said. “The police can’t work with this DA, and that speaks to her competency as a prosecutor.”
Mullins’ claims come as NYPD brass canceled a March breakfast meeting with Clark that was supposed to address police “bridging the gap in the Bronx community,” sources told the Daily News.
Several sergeants refused to attend, claiming Clark maliciously prosecuted Sgt. Hugh Barry, according to Mullins. Barry was acquitted earlier this month of criminal charges in the shooting death of a schizophrenic Bronx woman.
Precinct commanding officers also refused to attend because of the indictment of Bronx Capt. Naoki Yaguchi. The 13-year veteran was accused of official misconduct and obstructing governmental administration after allegedly delaying a Breathalyzer test for a Bronx detective involved in a two-car crash last April 22.
NYPD Captains Endowment Association President Roy Richter said the prosecution of Yaguchi was “completely unwarranted.”
“(Clark’s) running the DA office like it was ‘The Hunger Games,’ ” Richter said. “You don’t know who she’s going to throw in the arena next.” A $15 million notice of claim by DA was filed Monday office employee Crystal Rivera after she was barred from seeing her boyfriend, NYPD Detective David Terrell, who has been accused of civil rights abuses. Rivera claims the DA’s office was full of swinging parties and prosecutorial misconduct, which only bolstered Richter’s suspicions about Clark. “I am not surprised,” he said. “I’m just very happy to hear the breakfast meeting was canceled.” Clark, 55, refused to comment Tuesday on Rivera’s legal maneuver, but she defended her prosecutors, calling them “dedicated, hardworking public servants who tirelessly strive toward justice for our Bronx community.” “We handle some of the most difficult cases with fairness and the safety of the community foremost in mind,” Clark said in a statement. “My faith in the people of my office is unshakable. We will stay the course to serve the people of the Bronx by pursuing justice with integrity.”
A spokeswoman for the Bronx DA’s office said the breakfast was “postponed,” not canceled, and that “had nothing to do with the allegations made by (Rivera).”
“The breakfast scheduled for March 6 with patrol commanders from the Bronx was to discuss crime issues in the Bronx and criminal justice reforms. Clark had a similar gathering with Bronx police in 2016 when she took office,” the spokeswoman said.
Rivera, an 11-year employee with the district attorney’s office, said she witnessed prosecutors cheat on their husbands and wives, and boozed-up assistant district attorneys stumble to court. She’s said she has even seen the occasional brawl.
“People are having sex in the office,” Rivera, 44, told The News on Monday. “We used to have parties called ‘the narcotics parties’ where ADAs (would) have sexual relationships with officers and prosecutors. We’ve had incidents where ADAs are having sex with each other and they’re married.”