Brooklyn US Attorney hires MTA Inspector General Carolyn Pokorny

The US Attorney’s Office in Brooklyn hired the Metropolitan Transportation Authority’s Inspector General Carolyn Pokorny as a federal prosecutor, according to an announcement Monday, Jan. 3.

After two years serving as the MTA’s internal watchdog, Pokorny will return to the federal courthouse as First Assistant United States Attorney (FAUSA) overseeing criminal, civil, appeals, and administrative divisions in the Eastern District of New York, said US Attorney Breon Peace.

“Carolyn is an outstanding lawyer and proven leader with a distinguished record of public service with the Department of Justice and with the State and City of New York. She not only brings a wealth of knowledge and experience to the Office, but also impeccable judgment and the utmost integrity,” said Peace in a statement.

Carolyn Pokorny is sworn in today as First Assistant United States Attorney for the Eastern District of New York by United States Attorney Breon Peace. pic.twitter.com/lsRkxW7UFv

— US Attorney EDNY (@EDNYnews) January 3, 2022

Pokorny worked for more than a decade as a federal prosecutor at the Eastern District before she was nominated by ex-Governor Andrew Cuomo to take over as the first woman to lead the Office of the Inspector General (OIG) at the transit agency in 2019.

She led investigations into the massive authority’s transparency practices, its byzantine contracting apparatus, and even the MTA’s only boat wrecked by transit workers off the coast of Brooklyn last year.

“US Attorney Breon Peace has already proven to be a brilliant leader, and I am humbled to have this opportunity to serve as FAUSA as he executes his vision and fulfills the mission of this office,” Pokorny said in a statement.

She previously served as a special counsel for Cuomo on public integrity and for the state on ethics, risk, and compliance.

The Brooklyn Law School graduate spent 14 years as an assistant US attorney at the Eastern District, where she led the creation of an international narcotics task force that devised strategies to go after Mexico’s cocaine cartels, including notorious drug lord Joaquin “El Chapo” Guzman.

She also served as former US Attorney General Loretta Lynch’s deputy chief of staff and counselor.

At the OIG’s office, the head of the office’s audit unit Elizabeth “Beth” Keating will take over the top role as acting inspector general.

Governor Kathy Hochul will have to nominate Pokorny’s permanent successor to be confirmed by the State Senate after legislators return to session in Albany this week.

Elizabeth Keating.Marc A. Hermann / MTA New York City Transit