ALLENTOWN, Pa. — We’re already hearing from community leaders here in the Lehigh Valley who worked with Jim Martin throughout his career.<\/p>\n
Martin served as the Lehigh County District Attorney for more than two decades. Martin was appointed Lehigh County district attorney in January 1998 and was elected to six four-year terms before retiring in January 2024.<\/p>\n
He passed away Saturday afternoon at the age of 81.<\/p>\n
Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk remembered Martin as a tough but committed public servant.<\/p>\n
“Jim was a very tough man. He had a hard edge, but he also was really committed to justice, and justice for some of our most vulnerable people,” Tuerk said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Tuerk also reflected on Martin’s work with the city of Allentown, particularly when it came to addressing dirt bike-related issues.<\/p>\n
“He worked very closely with the city of Allentown around the dirt bike issue to help us get our hands around the dirt bike challenges that we face,” Tuerk described.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Along with Tuerk, other community leaders across the Lehigh Valley also spoke out in remembrance of Martin, who worked with many of them throughout his career.<\/p>\n
Current Lehigh County District Attorney Gavin Holihan called Martin a transformational figure for the District Attorney’s office.<\/p>\n
“Jim Martin was a transformational figure for the District Attorney’s Office. From 1998 to January 2024, that office changed dramatically, both in the size and the scope. The responsibilities that the office undertook under his leadership, he expanded it drastically and made it what it is today,” he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n
South Whitehall Township Police Department released a statement about the passing of Martin, saying he served as an “indispensable ally to municipal police officers.”<\/p>\n
“He recognized early on that protecting our neighborhoods required strong unity among local departments, and he consistently provided our officers and detectives with the strategic backing, resources, and legal guidance necessary to resolve complex criminal investigations. His focus on modernizing regional intelligence sharing, elevating investigative standards, and holding dangerous offenders accountable fundamentally transformed how we safeguard South Whitehall Township,” the department said in a Facebook post.<\/p>\n
“I join with countless other Lehigh County residents in mourning the passing of former District Attorney Jim Martin. For decades, District Attorney Martin fought to keep the people of Lehigh County safer,” said Rep. Mike Schlossberg (D-Lehigh). “More importantly, the District Attorney was a husband, father, grandfather, and active member of this community.”<\/p>\n
Congressman Ryan Mackenzie issued the following statement on Martin’s death:<\/p>\n
\u201cDistrict Attorney Martin was a devoted public servant, a pillar of our community, and a proud American. Throughout his long career, Jim dedicated each day to upholding the rule of law and pursuing justice for victims. His efforts earned him the respect, trust, and admiration of the community that he worked so hard to protect. Our prayers are with his family as they mourn the loss of this exceptional leader.\u201d<\/p>\n
Bishop Alfred A. Schlert of the Diocese of Allentown released a statement, saying Martin was a champion for justice and for the safety and well-being of the community.<\/p>\n
“DA Martin also worked with the Diocese over the years, offering support to the Church in her efforts to protect children and young people. His commitment to protecting the most vulnerable was an important part of his service to our community, and the Diocese appreciated his support in these efforts,” Schlert said. “I will remember DA Martin with gratitude for his many years of public service and for his steadfast commitment to the common good. His passing is a loss to his family, his colleagues in law enforcement, the Diocese, and the entire Lehigh County community.”<\/p>\n
69 News reporter Kevin Zipay spoke with Allentown Mayor Matt Tuerk about Martin’s death. He will have the full report on 69 News at 10:00 p.m. tonight.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"ALLENTOWN, Pa. — We’re already hearing from community leaders here in the Lehigh Valley who worked with Jim…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":266314,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[14],"tags":[214,232,153,155,154],"class_list":["post-266313","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-bethlehem","tag-_homepage_top_stories","tag-allentown-area","tag-bethlehem","tag-bethlehem-headlines","tag-bethlehem-news"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266313","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=266313"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/266313\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/266314"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=266313"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=266313"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-pa\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=266313"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}