Not even a quadruple bypass could stop Queens District Attorney Richard A. Brown.

Just released from the hospital following surgery during the summer of ’98, Brown insisted on stopping by his office before heading home – to "check on things" and sort through some paperwork.

A normal work day for Brown runs about 16 hours, a calendar full of staff meetings, one-on-one discussions with prosecutors regarding current and upcoming cases, visits to crime scenes and meetings with community groups.

In fact, in his 30-plus years as a public servant in Queens, including 18 years as a judge, most of Brown’s time has been spent "on the job."

The Tribune followed the Queens district attorney through one recent day to document the activities of his office. What follows here is a "Day in the Life" of Richard Brown.

5-7 a.m.:

He’s up at the crack of dawn, reading the morning newspapers, focused on the challenges that await him as Queens County’s top prosecutor and chief law enforcer.

Cinching the knot in his tie, Brown gazes across the sleepless streets of the borough from a window at his Queens Boulevard apartment, eyeing the calm that never makes the morning headlines.

7-9 a.m.:

Weather permitting, Brown heads onto Queens Boulevard by 7 a.m., walking the long blocks between home and his office on the third floor of the Queens Criminal Court complex on Queens Boulevard.

Heading toward the Kew Gardens courthouse, Brown’s thoughts turn to a crime scene he visited the night before. He’s been dubbed the county’s most "hands-on" district attorney ever – since he shows up regularly at crime scenes all over the borough, day or night.

Last night he went to Jackson Heights, where a woman was struck and killed by an out-of-control van. Brown eyes this crime scene as he does with each one he visits, being careful not to interfere with police investigators or evidence.

"I’m there to observe," he said. "I’m not there to develop a case or get involved in the investigation."

The time he spends at his desk between 7 and 9 a.m. is "invaluable," Brown said, because it is a quiet time, perfect for catching up on incoming mail, correspondence, and internal paperwork.

Three secretaries work with Brown in staggered shifts, to provide the DA with coverage from 7 a.m. to 8 p.m., Monday through Friday. The office never stops working, he said. "It’s a 24-7 operation."

One of the first things he does when he settles in for the morning is inquiring about the status of the case related to last night’s crime scene.

"What’s the sense of being there if I don’t follow up?" he said.

9-11 a.m.:

Staffers, prosecutors, and aides have been arriving for over 30 minutes, each preparing for a series of staff meetings and court appearances later in the day.

Prosecutors and investigators "pop" into Brown’s office to clear procedures and update the DA on current trials and recent arrests. Somehow, Brown has a handle on the cases. He’s aware of what’s come before and is able to discuss new developments in specific cases as though he was investigating each on his own.

Not bad for an office where prosecutors juggle 68,000 cases each year, and where a 24-hour hotline enables personnel to respond to every major crime scene in the county.

11 a.m.-2 p.m.:

Brown is inundated with phone calls from police brass, borough officials and fire officials seeking disposition of cases, or input on projected enforcement details, press conferences, etc. during the day.

Investigators and prosecutors from the DA’s Major Crimes/Narcotics units meet with Brown on a regular basis to go over current cases.

"These investigations often require sophisticated methods of eavesdropping that require, by statute, the personal attention of the district attorney and his or her signature on applications," Brown said. Such investigations require a great deal of the DA’s time and "lots of reading" of updates in statutes, etc. on "related matters," he added.

Brown is consulted on all major cases for new trial strategy and initial courtroom appearances. Very little – if anything – gets by his desk or goes into court without his input.

While Brown has made it clear that he is personally opposed to the death penalty, he has not let his feelings cloud the issue when a capital case crosses his desk.

His office has successfully prosecuted one capital case since the death penalty was reinstated by Gov. George Pataki. In that instance, the jury opted for life without parole for the man who murdered and tortured a house full of women in July 1996.

2-5 p.m.:

Brown takes time out to discuss some of the accomplishments his office has achieved since he first took office in 1991. They include:

• A reduction in auto theft. Such crimes have decreased from 50,000 per year when he became DA eight years ago to 16,510 last year.

Brown said that reduction is aided, in part, by new prosecutorial procedures which enhance court cases, resulting in the "best possible result" when car thieves come before the court.

• A "very protective" procedure regarding narcotics investigations and a relentless pursuit of drug dealers and drug gangs.

As a result, the DA’s Squad has taken down a number of violent drug gangs, he said. Local gangs and highly organized, "sophisticated" gangs have been eliminated from Queens housing projects and local neighborhoods.

Queens’ unsinkable District Attorney Richard Brown travels from "job to job" and numerous meetings with the media during a typical work day.

"These gangs have discovered that they are really not so sophisticated," Brown said. "In a word, they’re no match for our investigators."

• Homicides have decreased from 361 in 1992 to 119 per year, Brown said.

Successful prosecution of many defendants for many types of crimes has had a direct impact on homicides, he said.

• Civil enforcement has assisted in the near-elimination of numerous quality-of-life crimes, such as drag racing, indoor drug, and prostitution operations, he said.

The Roosevelt Avenue Task Force, which is a cooperative effort between this office and the borough presidents’ office and the city’s police department, has been attacking the spread of narcotics and prostitution in the Jackson Heights, Elmhurst, and Corona communities by using non-traditional means of enforcement. The task force has been able to close houses of prostitution through use of the city’s noise abatement law, padlocking and civil evictions in both private and public housing, he said.

• Quality-of-life crimes – such as single and double parking, street prostitution, illegal vendors, turnstile jumpers, graffiti vandalism, petty larceny and other non-violent crimes that are repeatedly addressed by borough residents are handled through the DA’s "Second Chance Program."

The program offers an additional alternative sentencing program to defendants convicted of such minor, non-violent crimes, Brown said. Defendants convicted of these crimes perform community service at various sites in the borough, under the supervision of community and local agencies.

"The work they perform, such as removing graffiti from highways and cleaning up parks, courthouse holding pens, and subway stations, directly benefits the community. Those who do not perform the community service are re-sentenced as required."

5-11 p.m.:

Brown takes "about" an hour most nights for dinner (usually at his desk). Then it’s off to a series of town hall, civic, community and police community council meetings that usually takes Brown through 11 p.m.

After a short stop back at his office, Brown heads home to rest and gather steam for yet another non-stop day.

Tomorrow, there will be an early morning visit to a courtroom by a class of school children. When they leave, Brown is scheduled to visit another school where students will raise questions about the operation of his office and the courts.