Wikipedia

Carolyn Pokorny

Carolyn Pokorny is a career federal prosecutor, currently serving as First Assistant United States Attorney at the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. Previously she served as the Inspector General for the New York City Metropolitan Transportation Authority at the Office of the MTA Inspector General. She is the first woman to hold that position.

Carolyn Pokorny
EducationBrooklyn Law School (JD) New York University (BA)
OccupationFirst Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Former MTA Inspector General
TermMay 2019 - present
AwardsAttorney General's Award for Distinguished Service (2011), Federal Prosecutor of the Year by the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation (2013)

Education

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Pokorny graduated from Brooklyn Law School where she was the Associate Managing Editor of Law Review, and received her bachelor's degree cum laude from New York University.[1] From 2002 - 2014, Pokorny served as an Adjunct Associate Professor of Clinical Law at her alma mater Brooklyn Law School.[2]

Career

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Bronx District Attorney's Office

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After graduating from Brooklyn Law School, Pokorny joined the Bronx District Attorney's Office as an Assistant District Attorney, where she spent three years serving in the Appeals Bureau.

The Honorable Arthur D. Spatt

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For two years, Pokorny served as a Judicial Law Clerk to the Honorable Arthur D. Spatt.[3] Spatt was a United States district judge of the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

Eastern District of New York

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From 1999 - 2014, Pokorny served as a federal prosecutor in the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York. Pokorny led the Office's narcotics and money laundering program and created the Office's International Narcotics and Money Laundering Strike Force, widely regarded as a "jewel" of the United States Department of Justice.[4] Pokorny went on to become the Eastern District of New York's Senior Litigation Counsel for Public Integrity, focusing on public corruption and white collar prosecutions. In 2011, then-Brooklyn US Attorney Loretta Lynch asked Pokorny to be her Deputy Chief of the Criminal Division, overseeing 100 criminal Assistant US attorneys in all areas, including fraud and corruption.

She received several awards for her work, including the U.S. Attorney General's Award for Distinguished Service, and the Federal Prosecutor of the Year award from the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation.[5]

In 2022, Pokorny returned to the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York to serve as the First Assistant United States Attorney to Breon Peace.[6][7]

Courtroom attack

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On March 11, 2008, Pokorny was attacked in Federal District Court in Brooklyn by Victor Wright with a razor he sneaked into the courtroom. The court reporter, Ronald Tolkin, "quickly jumped on Mr. Wright as he vigorously choked Ms. Pokorny but failed to cut her." Pokorny had successfully prosecuted Wright on federal drug charges in 2006 as part of a case involving the notorious kingpin Kenneth "Supreme" McGriff.[8][9]

Notable cases

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Norte Valle cartel
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Pokorny led the international investigation that resulted in the conviction of drug kingpin Juan Carlos "Chupeta" Ramírez Abadía and over 30 leaders of Colombia’s most powerful Cocaine cartel, known as the “Norte Valle cartel,” on charges of murder, operating a continuing criminal enterprise, money laundering and drug trafficking. Pokorny was able to help foreign governments recover nearly $1 billion in drug proceeds.[4][10]

Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán
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In 2009, Pokorny helped spearhead a national coordination effort between the United States Department of Justice and several U.S. Attorney's Offices across the United States to bring charges and seek the extradition of the leaders of several Mexican cartels, including Joaquín "El Chapo" Guzmán.[3]

Assemblyman Boyland
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In November 2011 Pokorny oversaw the undercover FBI investigation of New York State Assemblyman William Boyland Jr. and his chief of staff, Ryan Hermon, for bribe taking.[11][12] Boyland was sentenced to 14 years in federal prison.[13]

Trial of Pedro Espada Jr.
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In March 2012, Pokorny was a member of the trial team that obtained convictions against the former Majority Leader of the New York State Senate Pedro Espada Jr.[14] and his son on theft charges for using the nonprofit Soundview health network for personal purchases.[15] Espada was sentenced to 5 years in federal prison.[16]

Sant Singh Chatwell, Dream Hotels
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Pokorny prosecuted hotel magnate Sant Singh Chatwal of Dream Hotels for evading federal campaign contribution laws.[17]

Office of the United States Attorney General

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In 2015, then-President of the United States Barack Obama tapped Loretta Lynch, Pokorny's former boss, to be United States Attorney General. Pokorny became Lynch's Deputy Chief of Staff and Counselor serving as one of her senior advisors on the Department of Justice's 110,000 employees and various agencies.[5]

New York State Special Counsel Program for Ethics, Risk and Compliance

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In early 2017, Pokorny joined Governor of New York Andrew M. Cuomo's office heading the State-wide program for Ethics, Risk and Compliance for more than 2 years.[18][19]

Office of the MTA Inspector General

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In May 2019, after unanimous confirmation by New York State Senate, Pokorny became the first woman to lead the Office of the MTA Inspector General, the watchdog group for the Metropolitan Transportation Authority, the largest public transit authority in the United States.[5] In this role she has been lauded by good government and transit advocacy group for increasing the transparency of the office.[20][21][22]

References

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  1. ^ "Carolyn Pokorny '94". Brooklyn Law Notes. 2020-05-21. Retrieved 2020-11-02.
  2. ^ "Levine Lee Adds Senior Federal Prosecutor as Partner". www.businesswire.com. 2014-05-08. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  3. ^ a b "Carolyn Pokorny '94". Brooklyn Law Notes. 2020-05-21. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  4. ^ a b "Indictments Charging Leaders of the Norte Valle - Colombian Drug Cartel Unsealed". www.dea.gov. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  5. ^ a b c "Governor Cuomo Announces Unanimous Confirmation of Carolyn Pokorny - Former Federal Prosecutor and Deputy Chief of Staff to U.S. Attorney General Loretta Lynch - as Inspector General at the MTA". Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. 2019-05-30. Archived from the original on 2021-02-26. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  6. ^ Cohen, Luc. "Data-hosting in China hampers U.S. law enforcement -prosecutor".
  7. ^ O’Brien, Rebecca Davis; Rashbaum, William K. (2022-01-03). "M.T.A. Watchdog Is Named Top Deputy in U.S. Attorney's Office". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2022-08-02.
  8. ^ Kilgannon, Corey (2008-03-12). "Drug Defendant Attacks Prosecutor in Court (Published 2008)". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  9. ^ "Artfact - Transcript From a Courtroom Attack". New York Magazine. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  10. ^ "MTA's inspector general hits the rails running". Bond Buyer. 2019-09-12. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  11. ^ "New York State Assemblyman William F. Boyland, Jr. Charged with Bribery and Attempted Hobbs Act Extortion". FBI. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  12. ^ "Ryan N. Hermon, Chief of Staff to New York State Assemblyman William F. Boyland Jr., Charged with Bribery and Hobbs Act Extortion Conspiracy". FBI. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  13. ^ "Former New York State Assemblyman William F. Boyland, Jr. Sentenced to 14 Years for Bribery, Fraud, Extortion, Conspiracy, and Theft — FBI". www.fbi.gov. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  14. ^ "Former New York State Senate Majority Leader Pedro Espada, Jr. Sentenced To Five Years' Imprisonment". www.justice.gov. 2015-07-02. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  15. ^ "Ex-Sen. Espada's conspiracy trial begins". Newsday. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  16. ^ Marzulli, John. "Crooked ex-state Sen. Pedro Espada Jr. sentenced to 5 years in prison for embezzlement". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  17. ^ "Hotel Magnate Sant Singh Chatwal Pleads Guilty To Scheme To Evade Federal Election Campaign Contribution Limits, And To Witness Tampering". www.justice.gov. 2015-07-02. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  18. ^ Lovett, Kenneth. "Gov. Cuomo makes over two dozen new hires, nearly half of whom worked for President Obama and Hillary Clinton". nydailynews.com. Retrieved 2020-11-05.
  19. ^ "Governor Cuomo Announces Administration Appointments". Governor Andrew M. Cuomo. 2017-03-21. Retrieved 2020-12-28.
  20. ^ "Watchdog Group Applauds MTA IG Audit of Vendor Performance Evaluations – Reinvent Albany". reinventalbany.org. Retrieved 2021-01-07.
  21. ^ "MTA's inspector general hits the rails running". Bond Buyer. 2019-09-12. Retrieved 2021-01-07.
  22. ^ "MTA's New Inspector General Releases Dozens Of Reports Of 'Appalling' Employee Conduct". 2019-07-11. Retrieved 2021-01-07.
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