Photos and story by JOHN ANDERSON
(In the photo: New Allegany County District Attorney Peter Degnan signs the paperwork making his position official as his wife, Amy holds the Bible from the swearing in. Ian M. Jones, the former D.A., on the left, conducted the swearing in moments after becoming the new Allegany County Court Judge.
For many kids, going to work with their Dad or learning the family business becomes something they will take over someday.
That was the case with Peter J. Degnan, who is the new Allegany County District Attorney after being sworn in by the new Allegany County Court Judge, Ian M. Jones.
Degnan talked about those days and how he is looking forward to keeping Allegany County safe as the D.A. during a sit-down interview with the Sun.
“I did look up to my Dad, he was tough. He was a tough task master. If you didn’t know something about the law or a case or if you didn’t have evidence, you would hear about it!” Degnan said. “He made you care about your job, you have to do it right and to the best of your abilities.”
That is something Degnan wants to do as a prosecutor. It’s going to be different than being a public defender, assigned counsel, and a private attorney.
“This position means a lot, but as the district attorney, you can really help the community as a whole,” Degnan said. “Safety in a community makes a community thrive. People feel safe in the neighborhood, stores are not getting stolen from, neighbors are not getting threatened. I want peace and tranquillity and helping the community thrive. I want people to live and be happy and feel safe.”
Degnan went to McQuaid Jesuit High School in Rochester and went to LeMoyne for his undergraduate degree and his law degree at University of Detroit. He practiced for many years with his father in Canisteo and then had his own practice in Alfred. He then moved his home-base to the village of Belmont. He will be moving his office up the hill to the county office building.
With Jones becoming the new Allegany County Court Judge, Degnan’s title will be “Acting District Attorney.”
“I know a lot of defendants, I’ve done this forever,” he said. Degnan said. Working the other side of the aisle, he tried to change the lives of those who were arrested.
“When you can help people and make positive change in their lives, it’s really gratifying,” Degnan said. “I was a drug court lawyer in Hornell, and you could see how you were helping society. In this new role, it’s the same, protecting the community, protecting people and, in a positive way, changing the defendant’s behavior.”
Degnan said he will do what is best in his opinion for public safety, and he said there will be times when sentencing guidelines will get in the way of what he wants.
People think the job is to throw people in jail, but you also have to protect people,” Degnan said. “There are sentencing guidelines, and the judge gets to determine the sentencing. The defendant may make a plea based on the evidence. I also might get a guilty sentence and I may want someone to go to jail the rest of their lives, but the maximum is five years according to the law … it’s hard.”
Degnan has been a regular in courts in Allegany County during his three-decade career and the state and local bar associations have honored him with multiple awards for his integrity and service to the public.
A slideshow from Degnan’s swearing in:
