Albany’s Incumbent DA Battles a Challenger — And State Criminal Justice Reforms

Lukee Forbes, a longtime Albany activist and executive director of the youth empowerment organization We Are Revolutionary, getting Soares out of office is personal. At 15 years old, he was prosecuted by Soares’ office for providing two other teens with a tree limb used to assault a University of Albany professor. Forbes, who ultimately served seven years in prison, tells Bolts he struggled as a teenager with the death of his mother, running away from home repeatedly, skipping class, and turning to substances to cope. When he was locked up as a teenager, Forbes says he felt “like the system was punishing me for my trauma.” That’s a pattern he continues to observe in the capital region—struggling teens facing prosecution from Soares’ office, rather than getting the support they need to succeed. Read More