Return of the Christmas Cheer: Brooklyn DA’s office brings back holiday party

December 18, 2017 By Rob Abruzzese, Legal Editor Brooklyn Daily Eagle

After the election of the first Hispanic district attorney ever in the state, the Brooklyn District Attorney’s Office decided to bring back an old tradition: its office Christmas party. Pictured are DA-elect Eric Gonzalez and his wife Dagmar Gonzalez. Eagle photos by Rob Abruzzese

Share this:

With the election of Eric Gonzalez and record-low crime rates in Brooklyn, the Kings County District Attorney’s Office has a lot to celebrate this year.

More than 550 members of the office, including Gonzalez, all of the assistant DAs and the entire support staff, were in attendance at the New York Marriott at the Brooklyn Bridge in Downtown Brooklyn last Wednesday for food and dancing to celebrate the return of the office’s Christmas party.

“It’s important to get together every now and then and reflect on what we’ve accomplished together,” Gonzalez said. “What we accomplished in Brooklyn — and every person in this room has had a role in this — we’ve made Brooklyn the safest large municipality in the United States.”

A year ago, the office was not nearly in as spirited a mood. Then-DA Ken Thompson died in October 2016 and the future was very much in question even as Gonzalez took over as acting DA.

Gonzalez, a political newbie, was able to rally support behind him and win an election in the fall all while the DA’s Office itself managed to not only keep Brooklyn safe, but, as Gonzalez pointed out, have its safest year on record.

“This is the safest year we’ve had in recorded history in terms of homicides, in terms of shootings and virtually every index crime is down. And we’ve done that together,” Gonzalez said. “I am forever grateful to all of you for working so hard to ensure that Brooklyn remains a place where we want to live, work and raise families.

“It has been an incredibly difficult year with the passing of Ken Thompson, our beloved DA. We never stopped working, never stopped believing,” Gonzalez continued.

The DA’s Office holiday party is a tradition that goes back decades, however, it hasn’t been held in recent years. In some years there were no parties at all, some years featured many smaller parties hosted by specific bureaus. This year, Gonzalez felt it was important to unite the entire office.

“I want everyone know that we’re in this together,” Gonzalez said. “We’re going to accomplish great things in Brooklyn. We will continue to make Brooklyn a safe place to live, but we’re also going to be known as a fair district attorney’s office with progressive values that reflect the values of our community. Together we’re going to make this office the No. 1 DA’s Office not just in the city or state, but in the country.”