Former Nassau DA Denis Dillon, 76, dies

Former Nassau County District Attorney Denis Dillon, who demonstrated political durability despite criticism from opponents that he was sometimes swayed by his own religious beliefs, died early Sunday morning at his home in Rockville Centre, his friend and longtime spokesman Ed Grilli said.

Dillon was 76 years old.

A graduate of Fordham University and Fordham Law School, Dillon was one of the longest-serving district attorneys in the United States - and one of the longest-serving politicians in county, Long Island and state history.

In New York, only Manhattan District Attorney Robert Morgenthau served longer.

First elected as a Democrat in 1974, Dillon later became a Republican and served until losing re-election in a major upset to Kathleen Rice in 2005.

During his career Dillon, a devout Catholic, came under fire for his anti-abortion views as a right-to-life advocate who also advocated for the rights of fetuses in utero.

Some critics thought Dillon should not be biased in his role as DA by his own beliefs. Eventually, Grilli said, it caused the Democratic Party to withdraw its support - and forced Dillon to switch parties.

Dillon ran for governor in 1986 as nominee of the Right to Life Party. He finished behind Democrat Mario Cuomo and Westchester County Executive Andrew O'Rourke, a Democrat.

In the early 1990s Dillon was diagnosed with lymphoma, but treatment sent the disease into remission. Grilli said that the disease re-emerged a year or so ago and, after hospitalization for treatments, Dillon returned home - and eventually succumbed to the disease early Sunday morning. He leaves behind his wife, Anne, and daughters Barbara and Alice Marie.

"He was one of the most decent individuals I ever knew," Grilli, former spokesman for the district attorney's office, said Sunday. "There was no gray with him. Things were black or white. He never bowed to any political pressures. He did what he thought was right - and worked tirelessly for the people of Nassau County ... People did not always like his position. But he never shied away from any issue. He thought a public official's role was to lead, to put out their beliefs, and let the voters decide what they wanted in the end. That's what he did.

"He was a career prosecutor. He was not a politician."