LACKAWANNA COUNTY, Pa. — Pictures of Brian Gallagher’s family sit around his new office in downtown Scranton.
Creating a new home away from home in the building where he’s worked for more than a decade.
The Democrat became Lackawanna County’s new District Attorney earlier this month. He’ll fill out the term of Mark Powell who was picked by Governor Shapiro to become a county Judge.
For Gallagher, the job after a stint as a federal prosecutor and several years in the D.A.’s office.
“I started in the juvenile unit, prosecuted all types of juvenile crime. I then went to the DUI homicide by motor vehicle unit, and I headed the drug unit. I headed the arson unit. I’ve seen the inner workings of this office for the past 12 years. The DA’s office has the ability to do so much good for our neighborhoods, for our families,” said D.A. Gallagher.
Gallagher has family roots in West Scranton and still lives there.
His father Terrance Gallagher spent years as the district magistrate until he retired, his brother Sean filled the seat after that.
This upbringing is a large part of the values Gallagher says he brings to the office, “What I always took from that is treating people with dignity and respect. He’s a stern guy he’s gonna give you a hard time, but he’s gonna treat people with dignity and respect, and I was always taught about accountability and responsibility. Finding the truth is what matters.”
Now, in his newest role, Gallagher looks to work with all branches of law enforcement to crack down on problems he believes pose the biggest threat to Lackawanna County, “The biggest issue that we currently have is. Gang, gun, and drug violence, and part of that is juvenile violence. We are going to collaborate with our state and federal partners, and we are going to be proactive,” he said.
Gallagher plans to run for a full term as district attorney later this year.
“Still moving into the office and just gonna probably change some things internally and then effectuate how we aggressively investigate and prosecute crime,” said D.A. Brian Gallagher, (D) Lackawanna County.