Constituent Spotlight for December: District Leader Jesse Hamilton

Eric Adams

November 30, 2013

Award: Constituent Spotlight

      Jesse Hamilton was born and raised in New York City, and graduated from Ithaca College. He has an MBA from Long Island University and a JD degree from Seton Hall Law School.  He and his wife, Lorna, also an attorney, live in Brooklyn and have two children, Carla and Jesse IV, and a Dachshund named Paxton.

      Jesse is proud to have spent his entire career helping people, including over 20 years as an elected official in Crown Heights. The last seven of those years he has spent representing his community as District Leader of the 43rd Assembly District.

      As a three-term incumbent District Leader representing the Crown Heights area, he tirelessly works with elected Assembly members and elected City officials to ensure the community’s voice is heard.  His priorities as District Leader include ensuring civil rights, increasing jobs, decreasing crime, registering voters and improving the quality of life in our community.

      He has hired hundreds of poll workers to ensure that elections are run in an orderly fashion, assisted in the nomination of judicial delegates, and ensured county commission positions are filled.

      As a result of Jesse’s efforts, areas of Crown Heights now have Landmark Status, which helps safeguard our historic aesthetic, cultural heritage, and contributes to stabilizing and improving property values.

      Jesse worked to change the Lincoln Place and New York Avenue traffic pattern, reducing accidents and making the streets safer for our children.

      After a Jewish neighbor's front door was marked with swastika, Jesse led an investigation resulting in the arrests of the perpetrators.

      He has advocated for Civil Rights and Gay Rights, partnering with State Senator Eric Adams, who voted for Marriage Equality.

      After Hurricane Sandy, he worked with Senator Adams’ office to coordinate donations of food and clothing to New Yorkers who were affected by the storm.

      He co-sponsored the Stop the Sag campaign to improve the image of Black youth, along with State Senator Eric Adams and City Council member for the 35th District, Letitia James.

      He has served 27 years in the New York City Department of Finance assisting seniors, war veterans and homeowners.

      Jesse is currently President of the Lincoln Civic Block Association, which organizes community actions that enhance quality of life in the neighborhood. One of the Association’s greatest achievements was bringing the community together after the tragic shooting of one of his neighbors, Benny Lyde, and bringing Benny’s killers to justice.

      He serves as president of the Rosa Parks Independent Democratic Organization, which has become the leader in community empowerment by actively registering voters, focusing on community policing, gang violence and the 65 arson fires in our community since January 2006.

      As president of Community School Board 17 in Crown Heights from 1996 to 2003 (when Bloomberg eliminated school boards), he actively represented the Crown Heights community to effectively manage resources and improve education for public school students.

      Jesse is a DC37 Union member for over 27 years, and a member of the New York State Bar and Brooklyn Bar Association.

      He received the honor of being named a graduate of the NYC Civilian Police Academy.  This prestigious award is given to local community leaders by the local precinct commander in recognition of collaboration with local police precincts.