The Suffolk County District Attorney Office’s Major Crime Bureau Chief Kerriann Kelly was awarded the 2024 Prosecutor of the Year Award for Trial Advocacy at the District Attorneys Association of New York’s (DAASNY) annual summer conference this June.
Kelly was the prosecutor in the cases against Michael Valva and Angela Pollina in the tragic death of eight-year-old Thomas Valva.
In a statement, Suffolk County District Attorney Ray Tierney said that Kelly “rightfully deserves this special recognition for her superior performance” prosecuting the case, which led to convictions for both Valva’s father Michael and step-mother Angela Pollina for the boy’s 2020 murder that shocked and sickened Long Islanders.
In 2022 and 2023, Kelly led the trial team prosecuting the defendants in separate, high-profile trials for the murder of the boy, who died of hypothermia on the morning of January 17, 2020, after he and his 10-year-old brother were forced to sleep in an unheated garage in below-freezing temperatures by his own father and step-mother.
As a direct result of the evidence produced at trial and subsequent guilty verdicts, District Attorney Tierney requested a Special Grand Jury be empaneled to investigate the conduct and practices of Suffolk County Child Protective Services. Over the course of approximately six months, the Special Grand Jury heard testimony from 27 witnesses and examined 56 exhibits consisting of approximately 2,000 pages of material. That Special Grand Jury issued a report containing factual findings and recommendations for legislative, executive, and administrative action to improve the efficacy of CPS and the safety of children in Suffolk County.
Kelly, who is a graduate of Boston College and the Oklahoma City University School of Law, joined the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office in 1988. After law school, ADA Kelly worked for the Suffolk County Attorney’s Office as a Deputy County Attorney for two years before transferring to the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office.
“Apart from being a force to be reckoned with in the courtroom, Kerriann is the epitome of a veteran prosecutor, having served the Suffolk County District Attorney’s Office for 36 years, conducted dozens of felony trials, and graciously mentored generations of young prosecutors under her leadership,” said Tierney.
Kelly has served in multiple bureaus including white collar crime, narcotics, major crime, and homicide. Before Tierney promoted her to chief of the Major Crime Bureau in 2022, Kelly also served as chief of the Special Investigations Bureau, the Homicide Bureau, and the Felony Offense Bureau, where she supervised teams of prosecutors and oversaw hundreds of trials.
Kelly has brought over 40 felony cases to verdict at trial, including over 20 homicide trials, according to the Suffolk County District Attorney Office. Kelly also lectures on the topics of DNA, Grand Jury practice, jury selection, eyewitness identification, and video surveillance.
The DAASNY Prosecutor of the Year Award winners are selected from nominations made by district attorneys across New York State. The awards are given to prosecutors who have enhanced our criminal justice system in the courtroom and in the local community.
