MOUNTAINDALE – Stephen F. “Steve” Lungen passed away peacefully on Monday, April 13, after a courageous four-year battle with cancer.

He left behind a long list of accomplishments – and friends.

Boy Scout, fireman, veteran, public servant, community volunteer, father, grandfather, and counselor.

“He was a humble man, who seldom talked about himself,” Sullivan County Court Judge James R. Farrell said yesterday. “He was an exceptional public servant.”

Farrell should know.

He worked side-by-side with Steve Lungen for 14 years in the District Attorney’s Office – Lungen as DA and Farrell as Assistant DA.

“I learned everything I knew about the law from him,” Judge Farrell, who also served as DA of Sullivan County, said. “I can tell you if he had chosen to run for re-election again, I would have stayed with him forever.”

DA Lungen served as Sullivan County District Attorney for 27 years, prosecuting criminals and bringing justice to those who were wronged.

“He never forgot the people who elected him,” Judge Farrell said. “And he had a way of talking to people, connecting with the jurors. He was the Gold Standard.”

Retired New York State Appellate Court Judge Anthony T. Kane could not have agreed more.

“I don’t know that there was an attorney who was ever more prepared for a case than Steve Lungen. He prepared each case meticulously and knew from the very beginning what evidence he was going to introduce and when he was going to introduce it.

“He was an excellent trial lawyer,” Kane said. “He cared passionately about the people he represented in court – he always sought to see that justice was done.

“I don’t think there was a suspicious death in Sullivan County that Steve didn’t respond to personally,” Kane said. “He would be at the investigation scene to the very end.”

Dan Hust, who worked at the Sullivan County Democrat for 20 years covering the courts and crime, said, “I can’t think of a more respected and revered Sullivan County official in my lifetime. That respect was not ‘commanded’ – it was thoroughly earned by his integrity, his expertise, his clarity of right vs. wrong. He could justifiably be an intimidating presence in court, but in person, Steve was open, affable, and generous with time and advice. He faced personal tragedy with courage and perseverance, fearlessly advocated for the downtrodden and victimized, and created a superb legacy we would all do well to emulate to tirelessly, selflessly focus on protecting, promoting, and building our community.”

And what a job Steve did. 

From raising a family with his beloved wife of 57 years, Eileen, to becoming a grandparent, to serving our Country during the Vietnam War, to serving as DA, Steve Lungen always put God and Country first.

“He was so humble,” Farrell remembered. “He was awarded two Bronze Stars during the Vietnam War, including one with a V for Valor. He also served the fire service with dedication.”

Dick Coombe, who on the same ballot with Lungen and Kane when they were all running for office in the 1980s, said, “Steve’s military service, commitment to his community, court room presence, prosecutorial record, and impeccable integrity made him an outstanding District Attorney who was recognized throughout state and beyond. We all felt safer with Steve as District Attorney, and I was proud to serve our county with him and call him my friend.”

In 2019, Lungen was awarded the Distinguished Citizen Award from the Hudson Valley Council of the Boy Scout of America.

During the presentation, then President of the Sullivan County Bar, Danielle Jose-Decker, lauded Lungen’s service to the community.

“Advocate Lungen was and still remains a champion for victims of crime – old and young, rich or poor – having served as both the founder of the Family Violence Response Team of Sullivan County and the Sullivan County Stop DUI program,” Jose-Decker said. “Prosecutor Lungen was honored in 2010 by the NYS Bar Assn. Criminal Justice Section as outstanding prosecutor of the year. The very same year, he received the NYS DA Association’s Hogan Award. Both awards are given only to prosecutors who are hard-working and exemplify the highest ethical standards.”  

A life-long Sullivan County resident whose family has resided in Mountaindale since the early 1900s, Lungen belonged to the local boy scout troop there while growing up.

Recalling the words of the scout law, Lungen left some words of wisdom to those who attended the ceremony. 

“They [the Scout’s Code] are not just words that we talk about, they’re words that we should all follow. And if people would just take the time to consider them then life as we know it today would be very different. They act, rather, as a roadmap for how to be respectful of others and treat people as we would like to be treated. Our politicians in Washington, on both sides of the aisle, should take notice of this and act as an example.”

And Judge Farrell may have summed it up best.

“He was a real-life superhero.”