The deadline has passed for people who want to be the top law enforcement officer in western Massachusetts’s most populated county to file nomination papers. The deadline passed without the one-term incumbent Hampden District Attorney filing papers.
Hampden District Attorney Mark Mastroianni will give up the office he was elected to four years ago, but it is unknown when that will happen. Mastroianni continues to wait for Senate confirmation of his nomination to the federal bench in western Massachusetts.
The race to succeed him as the top prosecutor in Hampden County goes on with four Democrats in the running. The field consists of Shawn Allyn, a Holyoke attorney in private practice, attorney Hal Etkin, Anthony Gulluni, an assistant district attorney, and Brett Vottero, a former prosecutor. No Republican or independent candidates submitted nomination papers.
Mary McNally, the chief operating officer and chief finance officer in Mastrioianni’s office, was once considered the favorite to succeed him, but she opted not to run.
" I had a thought of running for DA when mark was first nominated. The thought was that I would carry on the office policies and initiatives, but frankly I just could not do the politics."
McNally, on Friday, was named the new executive director of the Springfield Parking Authority.
Mastroianni has declined to discuss the status of his appointment to a federal judgeship. He was nominated last September by President Obama. He went through a seemingly uneventful hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee last February, where he talked about how his experiences in private practice and as a prosecutor have prepared him to be a federal judge.
" Those experiences have taught me so much about the law, and the respect that should be had for each side, although it is an adversarial system. Fairness and integrity in the system is the common goal."
Mastrioianni’s nomination was brought to the Judiciary Committee by Massachusetts Democratic Senator Elizabeth Warren, who stressed the importance of filling a vacancy in the U.S. District Court in Springfield that now goes back almost four years.
" The vacancy has strained the federal judicial system in western Massachusetts. It has caused cases to be postponed, forced judges to travel from Boston to hold hearings and impeding the ability of citizens to get their day in court."
Massachusetts Democratic Senator Ed Markey has also strongly endorsed Mastrioanni.
" He is an outstanding candidate and I have high hopes that he is going to be confirmed by the United States Senate in the very near future."
If confirmed, Mastroianni would succeed U.S. District Court Judge Michael Ponsor, who took part-time status in 2010. Governor Deval Patrick would appoint someone to serve out what remains of Mastrioianni’s term as district attorney.
Many of President Obama’s judicial nominees have run into roadblocks in the U.S. Senate. Republicans have objected to several of the president’s picks for judgeships and used Senate rules to block or delay confirmation votes.
An earlier nominee to the federal bench in Springfield, Superior Court Judge Jeffrey Kinder, withdrew after two years passed without the Senate Judiciary Committee scheduling a confirmation hearing.
