Eric Schneiderman
| Eric Schneiderman | |
|---|---|
 |
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| Photo by the Office of Jerry Nadler | |
| 65th New York Attorney General | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office January 1, 2011 |
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| Governor | Andrew Cuomo |
| Preceded by | Andrew Cuomo |
| Member of the New York Senate from the 31st district |
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| In office January 1, 2003 – December 31, 2010 |
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| Preceded by | Efrain Gonzalez |
| Succeeded by | Adriano Espaillat |
| Member of the New York Senate from the 30th district |
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| In office January 1, 1999 – December 31, 2002 |
|
| Preceded by | Franz Leichter |
| Succeeded by | David Paterson |
| Personal details | |
| Born | December 31, 1954 New York City, New York |
| Political party | Democratic |
| Spouse(s) | Jennifer Cunningham (div.) |
| Residence | Upper West Side, Manhattan, New York City |
| Alma mater | Amherst College (B.A.) Harvard University (J.D.) |
| Profession | Lawyer |
| Religion | Judaism |
Eric T. Schneiderman (born December 31, 1954) is the 65th and current New York Attorney General.
Contents |
[edit] Early life, education, and early career
Schneiderman graduated from Amherst College in 1977 with a B.A. in English and Asian studies, and graduated with honors[citation needed] from Harvard Law School in 1982.[1]
Schneiderman's career began when he served for two years as Deputy Sheriff in Berkshire County, Massachusetts.[citation needed] He also clerked for two years within the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, subsequent to which he became a partner at the law firm of Kirkpatrick and Lockhart.[2] As a public interest lawyer, Schneiderman served for over a decade as counsel to the West Side Crime Prevention program, and as lead counsel to the Straphangers Campaign's lawsuit against New York's Metropolitan Transit Authority.[citation needed]
[edit] New York Senate
Before being elected Attorney General, Schneiderman previously represented the 31st District in the New York State Senate. This comprises Manhattan's Upper West Side, as well as Morningside Heights, West Harlem, Washington Heights, Inwood, and Marble Hill, in addition to part of Riverdale, The Bronx.
[edit] Elections
In the 1998 Democratic primary, Schneiderman, an anti-crime activist, defeated Daniel O'Donnell, a civil rights attorney with 68% of the vote.[3] In won the general election, he defeated Vincent McGowen with 82% of the vote.[4] He won re-election in 2000 (84%),[5] in 2002 (87%),[6] in 2004 (89%),[7] in 2006 (92%),[8] and 2008 (90%).[9]
[edit] Leadership
Schneiderman is a former Chairman of the Democratic Senate Campaign Committee. This post has served as a source of irritation to some of his colleagues within the Senate Republican leadership, prompting the redrawing of Senator Schneiderman's district in 2002 in order to include Washington Heights.[citation needed] This prompted former City Councilman Guillermo Linares - the first Dominican elected official within New York City - to run against him in the Democratic primary in an ultimately unsuccessful bid for office.
In October 2009, Schneiderman was selected to chair the special committee to investigate the conduct of former Senator Hiram Monserrate. The bipartisan committee unanimously recommended Monserrate's expulsion from the Senate.
[edit] Tenure
Schneiderman was the chief sponsor of the Rockefeller Drug Law reforms, which were passed and signed into law in 2009. The reforms included moving away from long, mandatory minimum sentences, and allocating funds for alternatives to incarceration, treatment and reentry of prisoners into society.[10] His other legislative accomplishments include passing sweeping ethics reforms [1][11] to root out fraud against taxpayers.
[edit] Attorney General
Schneiderman was the Democratic Party nominee for New York Attorney General, defeating four other candidates in the Democratic Primary on September 14, 2010.[12] He won the general election against Republican nominee and Richmond County district attorney Dan Donovan and took office on January 1, 2011.
In his first weeks in office, Attorney General Schneiderman launched a plan to root out fraud and return money illegally stolen from New York taxpayers at no additional cost to the state. This initiative includes a new "Taxpayer Protection Unit" specifically designed to go after corruption in state contracts, pension fund rip-offs, and large-scale tax cheats. Schneiderman has also bolstered the Attorney General’s Medicaid Fraud Control Unit by cracking down on fraud in the Medicaid program.
He was also instrumental in pushing for a tougher fraud settlement with large banks over illegal foreclosure practices. Along with California Attorney General Kamala Harris, Schneiderman pushed to prevent the settlement from including immunity for the banks from further investigation and prosecution of other related illegal activities.[13]
[edit] References
- ^ Official Biography on New York Office of the Attorney General website Retrieved 31 August 2011
- ^ The Patience of Schneiderman by Jimmy Vielkind, New York Observer
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=194000
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=90953
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=88049
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=6186
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=115732
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=311462
- ^ http://www.ourcampaigns.com/RaceDetail.html?RaceID=468632
- ^ "New York Passes Rockefeller Drug Law Reform". Legal Action Center. http://www.lac.org/index.php/lac/311. Retrieved July 13, 2011.
- ^ Breidenbach, Michelle. "NY hopes incentive will help blow the whistle on tax cheats". Syracuse Post-Standard. http://www.syracuse.com/news/index.ssf/2011/01/ny_hopes_new_law_wets_your_whi.html. Retrieved 9 January 2011.
- ^ Basil Katz, "Schneiderman wins primary for NY attorney general Reuters, Sept. 15, 2010
- ^ Gormley, Michael (February 3, 2012). "NY's Schneiderman Sues Banks in Foreclosure Effort". Associated Press. http://abcnews.go.com/US/wireStory/nys-schneiderman-sues-banks-foreclosure-effort-15507757#.Tz7QEkxWrSE. Retrieved February 17, 2012.
[edit] External links
- Official NY Attorney General Website
- Eric Schneiderman for Attorney General Official campaign website
| New York State Senate | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Franz Leichter |
New York State Senator from the 30th district 1999–2002 |
Succeeded by David Paterson |
| Preceded by Efrain Gonzalez |
New York State Senator from the 31st district 2003–2010 |
Succeeded by Adriano Espaillat |
| Preceded by Dale Volker |
Chairman of the New York State Senate Committee on Codes 2009–2010 |
Succeeded by Stephen Saland |
| Party political offices | ||
| Preceded by Andrew Cuomo |
Democratic nominee for New York Attorney General 2010 |
Succeeded by Most Recent |
| Legal offices | ||
| Preceded by Andrew Cuomo |
New York Attorney General 2011–present |
Incumbent |
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