New Criminal Justice Section Chair Finds Strength in Differences
6.20.2025
The new chair of the Criminal Justice Section David Cohn embraces the different viewpoints between his members who take opposing sides in the courtroom. One might see it as difficult, but Cohn views it as a strength and welcomes the discourse.
“One of the great things [about our section] is that prosecutors, defense attorneys tend to be in their own silos, but the New York State Bar Association brings them together,” he said. “We can all discuss and collaborate on how to improve the practice of criminal law. It’s a great forum that honestly does not exist anywhere else in the state. That is why I find it so helpful and rewarding.”
Cohn is a career prosecutor with 20 years of experience in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office and recently moved to the Bronx District Attorneys Office as its chief appellate attorney. In addition to his volunteer work for the New York State Bar Association, he is also a trainer for the New York Prosecutors Training Institute. It helps him understand how issues and perspectives in criminal law may be different in a New York City practice from one in the Southern Tier or in the North Country.
Cohn also marvels at the breadth of regional diversity in the section. The section’s immediate past chair is Leah Nowotarski, the public defender from Wyoming County in Western New York. Cohn’s focus for the section is to hold educational forums on current issues in criminal law such as modernization and the need for more funding.
“We all agree that there should be adequate funding for indigent defense and adequate resources for defense attorneys,” he adds. “I feel much better doing my job as a prosecutor if I know that the defendant in the criminal justice system is well represented.”
Cohn is excited to welcome over 200 new members who recently joined the section, which now has more than 1,700 members. He encourages them to attend programs in-person, which may be followed by a social events for attorneys and judges to get to know each other.
“It’s part of the magic of the New York State Bar Association. You can go talk to [other attorneys and judges] and learn they are human beings. It’s so different and something that cannot be done on the zoom screen,” he said.
