WASHINGTON, D.C. – Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke released the following statement on the passing of Kings County District Attorney Kenneth P. Thompson:

“I am extremely saddened to learn of the passing of Kings County District Attorney Kenneth P. Thompson. On behalf of the people of the Ninth Congressional District of New York and the Clarke Family, I wish to express my deepest and most profound condolences to his wife Lu-Shawn, his children, his extended family, and his friends. District Attorney Ken Thompson was a man of high distinction who dedicated his career to reforming the criminal justice system and securing the civil rights of all Americans. His rise to prominence became evident through his work as a federal prosecutor with the United States Department of Justice, where he combined a relentless work ethic and a brilliant mind for the law to pursue justice, as when he successfully prosecuted the police officers who viciously attacked Abner Louima.

“Ken Thompson continued his public service in the private sector as a civil rights attorney. I first had the honor of working with Ken as a New York City Council member, when he sought me out to ask my support to raise awareness of his quest to have the United States Department of Justice reinvestigate and prosecute the historic Emmett Till murder case. His passion for the pursuit of justice was relentless. He would go on to represent clients such as Nafissatou Diallo who otherwise would have been denied any recourse in the face of powerful interests. Since he became Kings County District Attorney, Ken Thompson has worked diligently to offer remedies to the wrongfully convicted, reopening dozens of cases and restoring freedom to individuals who never should have been sent to prison. Generations that follow us will remember District Attorney Thompson as a man who embodied the highest virtues of government service. His commitment to the pursuit of civil rights and pure unadulterated pursuit of justice has redefined what it is to be the top law enforcement official of Kings County. I was, and will always remain, honored to have shared in friendship with him. May he now Rest In Peace.”

Congresswoman Yvette D. Clarke, a member of the Committee on Energy and Commerce, the Subcommittee on Commerce, Manufacturing, and Trade, the Subcommittee on Communications and Technology, and the Subcommittee on Oversight and Investigations, the Committee on Ethics and the Committee on Small Business in the House of Representatives, proudly represents Brownsville, Crown Heights, East Flatbush, Flatbush, Gerritsen Beach, Madison, Midwood, Park Slope, Flatlands, Prospect Heights, Prospect-Lefferts Gardens, Sheepshead Bay, and Windsor Terrace.