WASHINGTON – Manhattan District Attorney Cy Vance, whose office is investigating former President Donald Trump and the Trump organization, announced Friday that he does not want to be re-elected and will step down at the end of the year.
The 66-year-old prosecutor in New York for not offering a fourth term, which was due to begin in January, is widely expected. He has served as Manhattan’s District Attorney since 2010.
‘For decades, I did not introduce myself as a district attorney like my predecessors. “I never considered it my last job, even though it is the best job and greatest honor I will ever have,” he said in a statement.
“I said twelve years ago that change is fundamentally good and essential for any institution,” he added. “Once these lasting effects in our communities, our public policies and our fight against crime have been secured, the time has come to pave the way for new leadership at the Manhattan DA’s office. ”
Vance sees the effort under his leadership to make New York City safer, overhaul the legal system and modernize the office. He recently received Trump’s tax returns and underlying documents from the former president’s accounting firm Mazars USA after the Supreme Court refused to stop production. Vance has filed tax returns for eight years for a major jury investigation into cash payments and other financial transactions.
Vance is also investigating former Trump adviser Steve Bannon in connection with his role in a charity that had to use private funds to build the southern boundary wall. Vance also tried to prosecute former Trump campaign manager Paul Manafort, but the state Supreme Court has ruled he can no longer prosecute him after Trump pardoned him last year.
Vance’s office has prosecuted filmmaker Harvey Weinstein, who was convicted of rape and sexual assault. Weinstein was sentenced to 23 years in prison last year.
