2005 Media Releases:

CAMDEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR'S OFFICE
VINCENT P. SARUBBI, CAMDEN COUNTY PROSECUTOR
MEDIA   INFORMATION

May 13, 2005

Camden County Prosecutor Vincent P. Sarubbi announced today that three Assistant Prosecutors with the Camden County Prosecutor's Office were honored recently by local, state and national organizations for outstanding service in the pursuit of justice.

• Assistant Prosecutor Donna Spinosi was named 2005 Law Enforcement Worker of the Year by the New Jersey Chapter of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC). The national non-profit organization honored Spinosi earlier this month for outstanding law enforcement advocacy in the area of child abuse.
  
  An Assistant Prosecutor for 24 years, Spinosi has served as Section Chief of the Child Abuse Unit for more than seven years. She has acted as a strong advocate for training in the fields of child protection as well as child abuse investigation and prosecution. She participates in training for recruits at the Camden County Police Academy, medical students at local hospitals and workers with the state Division of Youth and Family Services in protocols and standard operating procedures.
  
  The APSAC also noted Spinosi's key role in the Camden County Multi-Disciplinary Team (MDT), which develops a comprehensive intervention and treatment regimen for abused children in the county. The society recognized Spinosi's demonstrated ability to work effectively with local police departments, victim advocates, social workers and other professionals who serve on the MDT.
  
  The APSAC also recognized Spinosi for excellence in working with victims and non-offending family members for the best interest of children. The group noted Spinosi's patience, compassion, empathy, understanding and strong sense of justice in handling some of society's most sensitive and emotionally trying cases.
  
  
• Assistant Prosecutor Gladys E. Rodriguez last month received the "Defensores de la Justicia" (Defenders of Justice) award from Alianza, the Latino Law Student Association of Rutgers School of Law-Camden. According to Alianza, the award is given to a "profound and dedicated Latino/a in the legal profession" and honors Rodriguez for her commitment to social justice in her legal career and personal life.
  
  Rodriguez, a native of Santa Clara, Cuba, serves as Deputy First Assistant Prosecutor and Section Chief of the Grand Jury Unit, which handles the bulk of the criminal cases that come to the Prosecutor's Office from municipalities throughout the county. She has worked for the Prosecutor's Office for 18 years. The Camden County Office of Hispanic Affairs in 2000 awarded Rodriguez its Prominent Hispanic Award in the area of Law and Justice, and the Camden County Bar Association named her its Professional Lawyer of the Year in 2003.
  
  Rodriguez has also been involved in teaching urban youth about the criminal justice system through her participation in the Camden City Eighth Grade Mock Trial Project.
• Assistant Prosecutor Timothy Chatten last month received the Criminal Justice Victim Service Award, co-sponsored by the New Jersey Division of Criminal Justice, the state Office of Victim-Witness Advocacy and Victims of Crime Compensation Board. A four-year member of the Prosecutor's Office, Chatten is an experienced trial lawyer currently assigned to the Juvenile Unit.
  
  Chatten was recognized for his prosecution of Juan S. Thomas. A jury found Thomas guilty last year of Aggravated Sexual Assault, Sexual Assault and Endangering the Welfare of a Child. Thomas was sentenced to 65 years in State Prison, including 43 without parole.
  
  In a letter to the Court, the young victim thanked "Assistant Prosecutor Timothy Chatten and his team for giving my family and I the chance to have our voices heard."
  
  In a letter nominating Chatten for the award, Sarubbi and Linda Burkett, Victim-Witness Coordinator for the Prosecutor's Office, stated, "Assistant Prosecutor Chatten demonstrated to this family, as he does to all his victims and their families, that he serves justice by serving crime victims. He made it possible for this victim to be heard and to be believed," the letter stated.
  
  
  

"I am extremely proud that these outside organizations have recognized Tim, Gladys and Donna for what we in the Prosecutor's Office have known for some time - these dedicated professionals go above and beyond the call of duty in pursuing justice for victims and society," Sarubbi said. "They are outstanding attorneys who represent the finest qualities of prosecutors - integrity, intelligence, compassion and commitment. They also reflect the exceptionally high standards of professionalism demonstrated by the lawyers, investigators and clerical employees of the Prosecutor's Office.

"They are an example and inspiration for their colleagues in the law enforcement community, and I am honored to serve with them."