Former Sussex County prosecutor arrested for DUI

Former Sussex County prosecutor Martin Cosgrove has been arrested in relation to a hit-and-run DUI.

Delaware Attorney General Kathy Jennings announced the arrest Jan. 7, but did not provide details about when and where the incident occurred. It was later reported he was arrested by Seaford police in relation to an incident in November. 

“I was extremely disappointed to learn that one of our senior prosecutors in Sussex County, Martin Cosgrove, drove under the influence and damaged property in a hit-and-run. He has been charged and will be prosecuted,” she said. “I have stated before that the point of the law is to guarantee that, regardless of the individuals, we all play by the same rules. Prosecutors are agents of the law, but we are not and must not be above it.”

She said the case has been assigned to the director of the Department of Justice’s Family Division to foreclose any personal or professional conflicts. The attorney is a veteran prosecutor with both misdemeanor and felony trial experience who works in a different county, division and court from Cosgrove.

“This is a very sad moment for everyone who knows Marty well at the DOJ,” Jennings said. “He has been a decades-long friend and colleague whom I have always admired. And he has been a deservedly well-respected prosecutor and member of the Sussex County Bar who recently served as chief Sussex County prosecutor.”

Jennings said nobody was injured in the incident. 

“But our country’s casual attitude toward drunk driving is out of hand, and it has to stop,” she said. “This is a cultural problem and a public safety threat that we cannot tolerate – least of all among those with the privilege to enforce the law.”