Staten Island prosecutor Daniel Donovan and his office oversaw the 2014 chokehold death case of Eric Garner, although it failed to bring an indictment against NYPD officer Daniel Pantaleo. Donovan’s career is on an upswing in the months since, that after he was elected to fill a vacated seat in the U.S. Congress.
The New York Times reports that Donovan won a special election for a recently vacated seat in the U.S. House of Representatives. A Republican, Donovan will assume the 11th Congressional District seat that disgraced congressman Michael Grimm left due to felony charges of tax evasion. The district oversees Staten Island and portions of Brooklyn and makes Donovan the only Republican New York congressman in the House.
During his campaign against Democratic opponent and Brooklyn councilman Vincent Gentile, Donovan ran as a moderate and didn’t present many of the usual GOP talking points. However, his victory speech took clear aim at President Barack Obama, House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi and New York Mayor Bill de Blasio and their policies.
The Garner case was not mentioned much during the campaign, perhaps seeking to sidestep any manner of a media circus that could have ensued and not to turn off voters in the mostly conservative borough. Donovan has spoken in defense of how his office handled the Garner matter, expressing sympathy to the family.
—
Photo: Facebook
