Kathleen M. Rice
Image: Rick Kopstein / New York Law Journal
District Attorney Kathleen Rice has announced that she will seek a third term as Nassau County's top prosecutor. She said her priorities will include a continued crackdown on violent and cyber crime and redoubled efforts to root out fraud against taxpayers. "While our strides have been bold and our progress steady, I believe I have more to contribute to an office that we all rely upon to protect our families and to ensure the integrity of the criminal justice system," Rice, a Democrat, said in a Jan. 3 statement.
Rice, 47, was first elected as district attorney in 2005 when she unseated Republican Denis Dillon, a 31-year veteran of the post. She is the first woman to hold the job. In 2010, she ran unsuccessfully for state attorney general, finishing second in the Democratic primary behind Eric Schneiderman, the former state senator who won the general election.
A graduate of Touro Law Center, Rice also has worked as an assistant district attorney in Brooklyn and an assistant U.S. attorney in the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. According to the state Board of Elections, Rice had about $2 million on hand in her campaign war chest as of July 2012.
