Malik called into question Katz’s previous political support of the death penalty, her lack of prosecutorial skill and accused her of being deficient when it came to criminal justice reform...

Katz was a member of the New York State Assembly from 1994 to 1999. She later was in the City Council from 2002 to 2009 and became Borough President in 2013.

“As I grew and started working on different laws, and I got the opportunity 10 to 15 years later on in the City Council to vote against the death penalty,” said Katz. “The moment I voted for that I knew it was the wrong decision to make.”

Despite not having a prosecutorial background, Katz considered that a strength.

“I am not a career prosecutor,” said Katz. “I am not the reason or the cause that all of us are up here talking about reform.”

Lancman used his time to also call out Katz’s record for lacking criminal justice reform and for voting for the death penalty twice.

“So people evolve and part of the problem with the District Attorney’s office is that it has not evolved,” said Katz. “Even Councilman Lancman has evolved. In the year 2,000 he answered a questionnaire that asked “do you support the death penalty” and he answered yes.”

In a survey by Vote Smart, a non-partisan website that profiles political candidates across the country and their voting record, Lancman indicated that he supported the death penalty in New York.