Madeline Singas is a prosecutor, not a politician.
That’s the platform the current acting district attorney is running on, and she believes her track record backs her up.
Singas took on the title of acting district attorney back in January, when Kathleen Rice left the post to become congresswoman. It was a natural move for Singas, who has more than 20 years of experience and spent the last three and a half years as Rice’s chief assistant.
Since stepping into the top role, Singas has become an aggressive fighter against some of Nassau’s biggest issues, including heroin. She noted it’s a nationwide epidemic, and that she’s never been in a situation where someone in the room is not affected in some way by the addiction. In addition to introducing five bills that create harsher penalties for heroin dealers and doctors and pharmacists who illegally sell prescription drugs, Singas led her office in giving $585,000 of forfeiture money to New Hope in Freeport, to set up Nassau County’s first 24-hour medically monitored crisis center.
“It only has 30 beds, and I think we’ll need a lot more but it’s a start,” Singas said. “Families have a place to go and an answer when they’re in crisis and don’t know what to do. [Their loved ones will] have a bed and doctors and nurses and they can start the process of finding long term care.”
In an interview with Anton Media Group, Singas said she believes fighting the heroin epidemic on Long Island is a three-pronged approach: prevention, enforcement and treatment are all equally important.
“This problem didn’t start overnight and it’s not going to go away overnight, but if we don’t attack it in the right way, if we only do one of those things, it’s not going to work,” Singas said.
Another top priority for Singas is addressing public corruption. Her office spearheaded a contract review process which she said exposed how the system was easily abused and opened the door to corruption.
“If people aren’t respecting [taxpayer dollars] they have to be held accountable,” Singas said. “People have to understand when they go into public service, they’re here to serve the public, not use the funds as their personal piggy bank.”
She said that while her office is trying to change some of the laws, it’s a catch-22 as the people who have to change the laws are the ones most affected by them. But she believes with the repeated cases of corruption, the public is at the brink of saying “enough is enough.”
Singas said her office worked with the FBI’s eastern district in regard to the arrest of Bethpage restauranteur Harendra Singh, who was recently indicted on bribery, fraud and obstruction charges for allegedly paying bribes and kickbacks to Town of Oyster Bay employees.
They were troubling allegations, Singas said, but she said her relationships with federal prosecutors, FBI agents and local law enforcement is helpful in those kinds of cases.
“It’s important to have those relationships so whoever has the best shot should do the case,” Singas said. “It’s not about ego or headlines, it’s about who can hold these people accountable with the tools they have at their disposal.”
Singas will face off against current Town of Hempstead Supervisor Kate Murray at the polls on Tuesday, Nov. 3, for the district attorney title. Singas said unlike her opponent, who is a seasoned politician, she is an “independent prosecutor,” which is exactly what the DA needs to be.
“I’m a prosecutor. That’s what I’m trained to do. I’m informed with law, experience and common sense. My opponent can’t say that,”
Singas said. “There’s nothing Kate Murray has done to prepare her for this job. If you’re a politician, and you walk into a DA position, how do you turn that off?”
Singas (Dem, WFP, WEP) said she is banking on her record, as well as her title as a prosecutor, in the election. She emphasized that the race was not a political one, but should be based on who could do the right thing for everyone, not just their political affiliates.
“This is an important election. Residents will get to decide what type of prosecutor they want-someone with experience or someone who’s a politician,” Singas said. “I know how to be the DA because I am the DA. This is what I do, this is what I know, and I’m good at it. It’s not about politics, it’s about doing the right job for everyone.”
