Speaking with … Former Congressman and NDNY AUSA John Katko

Published: June 23, 2024

Interviewed By Janelle A. Pelli

John KatkoJohn Katko served four terms in Congress. Before that, he was a federal prosecutor, including for about 15 years at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of New York in his hometown of Syracuse. In this interview, Katko discussed his career, his love of trials, his service in Congress, and what he’s doing now.

First, can you tell us a bit about yourself and your background?

I am a native of central New York. I’m from Syracuse, and have lived here most of my adult life. I come from a big Irish Catholic family. I graduated with a political science major from Niagara University, then attended law school at Syracuse University, which impacted me in a positive way. At first, I thought I wanted to be an in-house corporate attorney, but I reached a turning point in my career about three years out of law school. While I was in private practice at a law firm in Washington, D.C., I worked on an anti-trust trial for Anheuser Busch, which gave me the bug for trial work.

What drew you to a career in public service?

In D.C., I was making more money as a first year associate than my dad ever did. I looked at the work being done, and felt like it was all about money. I decided I didn’t want that lifestyle. Plus, I had the public service itch, and wanted to scratch it. So I took an opportunity to go to the SEC. While I was there, I was a caterpillar that became a butterfly. Where I had been the fifth man on the team in private practice, I was now the first chair, and sometimes the only person on a case, handling high-stakes litigation for the SEC. I was proud to say I was working to stop the “bad guys” from doing bad things.

Can you tell us about the types of cases you tried as a trial attorney at the SEC?

We had a tremendous amount of securities fraud cases at the time, especially foreign fraud cases and scams that targeted older populations. We also saw a lot of failure to properly report cases. In one landmark case, about six weeks after filing SEC reports saying the company was doing ok, the company went bankrupt. This was a big company, and through a lot of hard work, we were able to see the fraud progression from being honest to dishonest. From my perspective, uncovering the fraud was really fun stuff.

Towards the end of my stint with the SEC, I was loaned to the United States Attorney’s Office in Alexandria, Virginia for a six month term. There, I was exposed to criminal prosecutions. I consider that position to be my training for my future career. I had a major moment – and I hope everyone has it at some point in their career. In court, when I introduced myself as representing the United States of America, it felt like a lightning bolt hit me. The sense of pride and the rush I got from saying that – I knew then that was what I wanted to do.

What did you learn from your experience as an Assistant United States Attorney, and how did that experience prepare you for later roles in your career?

I learned several things. First, I was taught early on by mentors that the job is not about winning, it is about doing justice. I was taught never to cut corners, and never to do anything I’m not comfortable reading about the next day in the paper. Because of that, I was trained to be very thorough and honest. I had a good reputation with the defense bar – if I knew there were flaws in my case, I’d tell them. The job really instilled a sense of integrity in me early on, and that integrity has stayed with me and served me very well.

I offer the same advice to young attorneys: don’t cut corners. Don’t get out-worked on a case. And never ever lose your moral compass. If you set a foundation of integrity and hard work, everything else will work out.

You were also an organized crime prosecutor at the United States Department of Justice, can you tell us about that experience?

I was hired by the Department of Justice Narcotics and Dangerous Drugs Section, and was immediately shipped off to go to the El Paso, Texas border. I arrived never having tried a jury trial before, and was thrown into the deep end quickly. In a year and a half to two years, I handled six major trials. It was a great experience. From there, I was transferred to San Juan, Puerto Rico. I tried the first death penalty-eligible case there. After that three month trial, I returned home to Syracuse for fifteen years.
I have all kinds of war stories. For example, one guy had tattooed his eyelids with eyeballs. He was the creepiest dude I’ve ever met. I was always impressed by the intelligence and craftiness of criminal organizations. I thought if only these individuals could put those talents to a legitimate use, they could do well for themselves. The job was a master class in the study of human nature.

I was routinely asked by the DOJ to train prosecutors in foreign countries through OPDAT, which is the Office of Overseas Prosecutorial Development, Assistance, and Training. I travelled everywhere from Moscow to Brazil. I was often talking to foreign prosecutors who did not understand what a jury trial was! It was such a rewarding experience.

I was also appointed to be a foreign prosecutor in Albania in 2012. Albanian Government troops had killed a number of protestors, and the country was teetering on edge of disarray at the time. The State Department asked me to prosecute it, because they wanted a United States prosecutor to lend legitimacy to the case. We were able to bring everyone to justice and help calm the country during a turbulent time.

What was the most difficult part of your job as an organized crime prosecutor?

The most difficult part was sitting in living rooms of people who have had their children murdered – it was gut wrenching, and far worse than you could possibly imagine. But it would also motivate me to bring justice. The other challenging part was the tremendous amount of stress the job put on my family. I never wanted to give up and walk away because of that, and my wife was always my biggest supporter. We both knew if I gave up, the bad guys would win.

What case are you most proud of from your time as a prosecutor?

I handled a case about police corruption in Schenectady, which was by far my proudest and most troubling case. We got a conviction of four very senior members of the Schenectady Police Department, which led to hundreds of cases being dismissed from the Schenectady District Attorney’s Office because of tampered evidence and other issues related to the scheme.

Although that is the case I am proudest of, it was also very troubling and illuminating to see the police in such a corrupt limelight. I believe the case made me a better, and tougher, prosecutor going forward.

Tell us about your switch into politics and responsibilities as a U.S. Congressman?

I never sought out politics, because I believed that a good prosecutor should divorce himself from political discussions. At some point, I was asked if I would run for Congress. I decided I could either continue to complain about politics in Washington, or I could do something about it.

Being a Congressman allowed me to continue public service in a manner I wanted, which was to focus on keeping the country safe. By the time I got to Congress, I couldn’t think of doing anything other than homeland security. I was on the Homeland Security Committee. In fact, I was a chair of a subcommittee or the committee as a whole the entire time I was in Congress, which is pretty rare.

What are you up to currently?

Currently, I am doing consulting and lobbying for a homeland security-related company, Hill East Group, LLC. I advise cybersecurity-related companies that are focused on all kinds of cybersecurity, including products that help keep our country safe. I am also a routine contributor to ABC News on homeland security and criminal litigation matters.

The issues impacting homeland security have changed dramatically over time. I lost friends on September 11th, like a lot of us did. In the wake of that, the country was never more unified in the importance of keeping our country safe. As time went on, even keeping our country safe has become politicized. In the eight years I was in Congress, cybersecurity was by far the biggest threat to our country. It’s been such a dramatic change.

What role do you see professional associations and organizations having for attorneys today? What role have they had in your career?

If I had to use a word: professionalism. So much in our society has broken down by a lack of dignity and proper conduct. Bar associations, and in particular in the Northern District of New York, have instilled a sense of professionalism with attorneys that cannot be underemphasized. You can have a “Rock ’Em Sock ’Em” trial, and be friends with your adversary. Society would be better off if it were to continue to reinforce that sense of professionalism that the bar association encourages.

I feel blessed and lucky that I gravitated towards the law and a career in public service. And I am even luckier that it has been centered in Central New York. A lot of that has to do with the bar association and the collegiality of the bar up here.

How do you recommend attorneys who aren’t in public service get involved with giving back to others?

Pro bono programs are great, humbling and can be very rewarding. Pro bono should be seen as a backbone of professionalism, and not seen as a burden. My recommendation is to take a pro bono case. Roll your sleeves up, you’ll enjoy it.

What do you like to do when you are not working?

I like to spend time with my family and travel with my wife. Family is everything. I also like to ride my motorcycle.