Chaim Deutsch
Member of the New York City Council
from the 48th district
In office
January 1, 2014 – April 27, 2021
Preceded byMichael Chaim Nelson
Succeeded byInna Vernikov
Personal details
Born (1969-04-15) April 15, 1969
Long Beach, New York, U.S.
Political partyDemocratic
SpouseSara Deutsch
Children5

Chaim M. Deutsch is an American politician who served as a New York City Council Member for the 48th district from 2014 to 2021. He is a Democrat. The district includes Brighton Beach, Gerritsen Beach, Gravesend, Manhattan Beach, Marine Park, Midwood, Plum Beach, and Sheepshead Bay in Brooklyn. He was expelled from City Council after his guilty plea to charges of tax fraud in April 2021.

Personal life

Deutsch is the son of Romanian immigrants who were Holocaust survivors.[1] As a teenager, his father survived three concentration camps and was liberated at Gunskirchen before coming to the United States in 1965, but never spoke about the experience. Deutsch discovered his father's Holocaust history in a book after his death.[2][3][4]

Growing up, Deutsch lived in a small two-bedroom apartment as one of four boys. In between studying at yeshiva, Deutsch took up a number of jobs to support his family, such as making pizza in a kosher pizza shop.[5]

He married his wife Sara at age 19 and has five children, as well as two grandchildren.[6] He speaks English, Yiddish, and Spanish.[7][8] Deutsch is an Orthodox Jew and a Kohen.

Career

In 1991 at age 23, Deutsch was inspired by volunteer patrols in neighboring communities and founded the Flatbush Shomrim Safety Patrol, in which he later served as President and ran until 2010.[9][10]

In 1996, he began working as a constituent liaison for Councilman Lloyd Henry and later became Chief of Operations for Councilman Michael Nelson. Deutsch also worked in real estate management and eventually founded his own firm, Chasa Management, which he had to give up after new City Council rules banned outside income for members.[11]

Deutsch is a graduate of the New York Police Department Citizens Police Academy. Following the aftermath of Hurricane Sandy in 2012, he mobilized volunteers to evacuate residents and assist in the distribution of goods to people affected by the storm. Deutsch was elected Councilman in 2013 after defeating Theresa Scavo, lawyers Nátraj Bhushan and Igor Oberman and District Leader Ari Kagan in the Democratic primary, and then defeating David Storobin in the general election. Deutsch also served as vice president and police liaison for the Council of Jewish Organizations of Flatbush.

New York City Council

In 2014 a new Council Subcommittee on non-public Schools was created, and he was appointed its Chair and only member.[12] In January 2018 he was appointed Chair of the City Council’s Veterans Committee.[13] In February 2018 he was unanimously elected Chair of the City Council's 14-member Jewish Caucus.[14] In January 2019, his Holocaust Remembrance Bill passed the City Council, recognizing International Holocaust Remembrance Day in New York City on January 27, and declaring the entire week following as a citywide Holocaust Education Week.[15]

He views himself as a "conservative Democrat."[7] Deutsch's position has a term limit of two consecutive four-year terms.[7]

In 2019, Deutsch decided to solely use public transportation to travel to his office following the local killing of 10-year old boy Enzo Farachio in which a car which crashed into a bus stop.[16] At a vigil with Farachio's family, he said: “I took a big step, I gave up my own personal car, just yesterday. And I’m going to be taking mass transit as much as I can. At times I’m going to be using a family member’s car, but I’m going to make an example to others, that if you can take mass transit, leave your car at home and take mass transit. If we can cut driving by 50 percent or 75 percent or 25 percent then we accomplish something.”

After Deutsch pleaded guilty to tax fraud charges, City Council Speaker Corey Johnson announced that "Based on our review of the charging document and Mr. Chaim Deutsch’s plea agreement, the Council has concluded that the office of the 48th Council District has been vacated under the operation of law ... He is no longer a member of the City Council."[17]

Congressional campaign 2020

On January 21, 2020, Deutsch announced his intent to run against incumbent Yvette Clarke in the Democratic primary for New York's 9th congressional district.[18][19] On election night, Deutsch received only 9.4% of the in-person vote in the Democratic primary on June 23, 2020.[20] He conceded over Twitter, congratulating Clarke while also expressing concerns about voter suppression.[21]

Tax fraud

On April 22, 2021, Deutsch pleaded guilty to tax fraud in Manhattan federal court.[22] The charges arose from personal income tax filings for the year 2015 that included fraudulent information about business expenses related to Chasa Management, a firm that he solely owned. Deutsch failed to pay $82,076 in federal taxes from 2013 to 2015.[23][24] The City Council expelled him the following week.[25]

Election history

Deutsch was elected to the New York City Council on November 5, 2013 after defeating Republican David Storobin and multiple primary opponents. He succeeded Democrat Mike Nelson, who was term-limited.[26][27]

In 2017, Deutsch won re-election, after defeating both an opponent in the Democratic primary and Steve Saperstein (Republican, Conservative, and Reform Parties) in the general election.[28][29][30][31]

Per official election night results, Deutsch came in fourth in the 2020 Democratic primary for New York's 9th congressional district, behind incumbent Yvette Clarke and Adem Bunkedekko.[20]

Election history
Office Year Election Results
NYC Council
District 48		 2013 Democratic primary √ Chaim M. Deutsch 34.76%
Ari Kagan 30.52%
Theresa R. Scavo 18.18%
Igor Oberman 14.02%
Natraj S. Bhushan 2.52%
NYC Council
District 48		 2013 General √ Chaim M. Deutsch (D) 49.59%
David Storobin (R) 37.10%
Igor Oberman (Working Families) 4.45%
Alexander Lotovsky (Forward) .72%
Election history
Office Year Election Results
NYC Council
District 48		 2017 Democratic primary √ Chaim M. Deutsch 81.1%
Marat Filler 18.9%
NYC Council
District 48		 2017 General √ Chaim M. Deutsch (D) 61.6%
Steve Saperstein (R) 38.4%
(Unofficial in-person vote results only)
Election history
Office Year Election Results
New York's 9th congressional district 2020 Democratic primary √ Yvette Clarke 62.3%
Adem Bunkeddeko 17.9%
Chaim Deutsch 9.4%
Isiah James 9.4%
Lutchi Gayot 1.0%

References

  1. ↑ "Why Everyone Loves Councilman Chaim Deutsch". The Vues. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
  2. ↑ Wagner, Tara Lynn. "Brooklyn Community Honors Holocaust Victims With Survivors". NY1. Retrieved 18 September 2017.
  3. ↑ "'I Expect to be Attacked Since I'm the Only Jewish Candidate'". COLlive. 2020-01-31. Retrieved 2020-02-02.
  4. ↑ @ChaimDeutsch (May 5, 2020). "75 years ago today, my father was liberated by the 71st Infantry Division of the @USArmy from the Gunkskirchen conc…" (Tweet). Retrieved 2020-05-05 – via Twitter.
  5. ↑ Stephen Witt. "Deutsch Elected Chair of Council's Jewish Caucus". Kings County Politics. Retrieved 1 February 2018.
  6. ↑ "Home". chaimdeutsch2017. Archived from the original on 2018-01-31. Retrieved 2018-02-11.
  7. 1 2 3 "The Jewish Vues | Why Everyone Loves Councilman Chaim Deutsch".
  8. ↑ "Meet the City Council's New Members: Chaim Deutsch". City and State. Archived from the original on 12 February 2018. Retrieved 1 December 2013.
  9. ↑ Lurie, Bea (1997). "Restoring Order: Community Residents Lead the Way to Safer Neighborhoods". Shelterforce/National Housing Institute. Archived from the original on 1997-07-11.
  10. ↑ "Exclusive Interview with Councilman Chaim Deutsch on The eve of his election for U.S. Congress". The Jewish Veus.
  11. ↑ Cuba, Julianne (2017-03-16). "Deutsch: I'll Dump $249k in Pay to Stay a Councilman". Brooklyn Paper. Retrieved 2020-02-02.
  12. ↑ Clark, Amy Sara (22 January 2014). "Orthodox Councilman To Chair New Subcommittee On Private Schools". jewishweek.timesofisrael.com.
  13. ↑ "Treyger, Deutsch appointed to new leadership roles in City Council". Archived from the original on 2019-02-03. Retrieved 2019-02-02.
  14. ↑ Witt, Stephen (February 1, 2018). "Deutsch Elected Chair of Council's Jewish Caucus".
  15. ↑ Politics, Kings County (January 28, 2019). "Brooklyn Lawmakers On The Move Jan. 28, 2019".
  16. ↑ "Streetsies 2019: The Biggest Awards — The Biggest Winners". Streetsblog New York City. 2019-12-31. Retrieved 2020-01-08.
  17. ↑ @jacobkornbluh (April 27, 2021). "Council Speaker Johnson: "Based on our review of the charging document and Mr. Chaim Deutsch's plea agreement, the…" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  18. ↑ "Councilman Chaim Deutsch Announces Congressional Run | Hamodia.com". Hamodia. January 21, 2020.
  19. ↑ "Chaim Deutsch May Run For Congress". December 10, 2019.
  20. 1 2 "New York Primary Election Results: Ninth Congressional District". The New York Times. 6 July 2020. Retrieved 12 July 2020.
  21. ↑ @ChaimDeutsch (June 24, 2020). "I am deeply proud of what we accomplished. Thank you to everyone who cast their ballot for me. Congratulations…" (Tweet). Retrieved 2020-06-30 – via Twitter.
  22. ↑ "New York City Council Member Pleads Guilty To Tax Fraud". justice.gov. United States Department of Justice. 22 April 2021. Archived from the original on 22 April 2021. Retrieved 25 April 2021.
  23. ↑ Mays, Jeffery C. (April 23, 2021). "Councilman Pleads Guilty to $82,000 Tax Fraud. He Has No Plans to Quit". The New York Times. p. A22. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  24. ↑ Chung, Jen (April 22, 2021). "Brooklyn Council Member Chaim Deutsch Pleads Guilty To Tax Fraud". Gothamist. Archived from the original on 28 April 2021. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  25. ↑ Valiquette, Joe (April 28, 2021). "Chaim Deutsch Ousted From NYC Council After Pleading Guilty to Tax Fraud". NBC New York. Retrieved 28 April 2021.
  26. ↑ "Chaim Deutsch Wins City Council Race in Brooklyn » Matzav.com - The Online Voice of Torah Jewry". Matzav.com. 2013-11-06. Retrieved 2014-03-11.
  27. ↑ Klepfisz, Irena (June 27, 2018). "The Half-Life of Sexual Abuse in a Holocaust-Survivor Family". Tablet Magazine.
  28. ↑ Kelly Mena. "Chaim Deutsch Cruises To Re-Election". Kings County Politics. Retrieved 8 November 2017.
  29. ↑ "Election Results: 2017 NY and NJ General Elections". WNYC. Retrieved 7 November 2017.
  30. ↑ "2017 NYC Primary Elections Results". WNYC. Retrieved 12 September 2017.
  31. ↑ Mena, Kelly (November 8, 2017). "Chaim Deutsch Cruises To Re-Election".
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