Preceded by Robert T. Johnson Spouse(s) Detective Ray Davis Party Democratic Party | Political party Democratic Party Religion Christian | |
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Alma mater Boston College (B.A.)
Howard University (J.D.) Residence The Bronx, New York City, New York, United States Education Boston College, Howard University | ||
Darcel Denise Clark (born 1962) is a New York attorney and prosecutor who currently serves as the Bronx County District Attorney, serving since 2016. Clark is the first woman to hold that office, and the first female of color to serve as a district attorney in the history of the State of New York.
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Prior to being elected district attorney, Clark served as a judge on New York City Criminal Court and subsequently on the New York Supreme Court in the Bronx and in that court's Appellate Division.
Early life
Clark is a native of the Bronx. In her early life, she lived in the Soundview Houses in the South Bronx. Her parents, Daniel and Viola, were both community-oriented people. Her father, a grounds supervisor, worked hard to provide for the family. Her mother, a nurse, was a member of the tenant patrol, which was formed in 1975, to keep neighbors and their children safe. She attended New York City Public Schools and graduated from Harry S. Truman High School in the Bronx. Clark became the first member of her family to attend college.
She attended Boston College, graduating in 1983 with a Bachelor's of Arts. She then attended law school at Howard University, graduating in 1986.
Clark is married to First Grade Detective Eaton "Ray" Davis, a 32-year veteran of the New York City Police Department and graduate of John Jay College of the City University of New York. They are members of Thessalonia Worship Center in the South Bronx and reside in the Wakefield section of the Bronx.
Early career and member of the judiciary
Following law school, Clark returned to the Bronx, where she was hired as an assistant district attorney for Mario Merola, the Bronx County District Attorney at the time, and stayed under her immediate predecessor, Robert Johnson. Clark served as supervisor of the Narcotics Bureau from 1993 to 1997 and Deputy Chief of the Criminal Court bureau from 1997 to 1999.
In 1999, New York City Mayor Rudy Giuliani appointed Clark as a Judge for the Criminal Court for the City of New York, where she served for seven years. In 2006, Clark was elected to the Supreme Court in Bronx County, where she served until Governor Andrew Cuomo appointed her to serve as an Associate Justice of the Appellate Division of the First Department of the New York Supreme Court in November 2012.
Bronx County District Attorney
Clark decided to step down from the bench to seek election as the Bronx County District Attorney, following Johnson's decision to step down to seek a judgeship one week after his win in the primary election in September 2015. This sparked controversy, as much of the press perceived Johnson's decision as orchestrated by the Bronx Democratic Party to avoid selecting the next district attorney in the primary. Regardless, Clark easily defeated her Republican opponent, Robert Siano, in the November 2015 general election, garnering 86.64% of the vote.
As district attorney, Clark has vowed to implement reforms to address wrongful conviction, administrative backlogs, and problems surrounding Rikers Island, among others.
In March 2016, Clark faced criticism over an initial decision to bring felony charges against a woman, Candie Hailie, for breaking a chair while jailed and awaiting trial at Rikers Island, the main jail for New York City. Hailie had spent three years at Rikers, and two of those were in solitary confinement. Solitary confinement is considered a form of torture by the United Nations, and the U.N. has called for banning it in most cases. Hailie was acquitted of the original charges that brought her to Rikers Island and was released in the spring of 2015. Near the end of March 2016, Judge William Mogulescu brokered a deal where, Hailey, 32, agreed to plead guilty to four counts of disorderly conduct, a non-criminal violation, in exchange for prosecutors dismissing a felony and three misdemeanors related to Hailie's tumultuous time behind bars. The case was reported by multiple news agencies, and it was claimed that Clark's decisions in this case were at odds with campaign promises she made when running for district attorney.