Personal Statement

My name is Alberto Chonillo and I'm a 33 year old Hispanic living in Staten Island, NY. I have a wife and a three year old son. I am a Junior attending the College of Staten Island and I am pursuing a degree in Political Science and Philosophy. Once I receive my degree, I plan on attending law school and then plan on working in the public sector, most likely as a prosecutor.

As a Poli Sci major, I would know what ideology I fall under and I believe that I am half Conservative and half Libertarian. Like most of the country, I lean toward the center/right. As far as my conservative side goes, I am mostly a fiscal conservative, which means I prefer the government to spend less money and have a balanced budget.

My Libertarian side believes that the government should have less laws that control the lives of Americans. For instance, as far as marriage rights go, I believe that the government should not be in the business of marrying anyone. I always believed that marriage is a religious institution, which should stay in the church. Anyone who wants parental or spousal rights should have a civil union. No reason why church and state should mix.

Even though I prefer the government to have less laws applied to our lives, I feel strongly about obeying and upholding the law. If I really felt as if a law is very unjust, I would start a grassroots campaign to have legislature reverse the law, rather than committing civil disobedience to change laws. Our government officials work for the public and they have to listen to us or get voted out. So far, I like criminal law and while not perfect, I think that it helps keep the public generally safe. That's why I would like to become a prosecutor.

Keeping criminals behind bars is used as a deterrent for many other criminals and keeps the public safe from them. I have a Criminal Justice degree so I've learned how the entire system works together for public safety and I would like to contribute to that. I have actually interned in the District Attorney's office and helped with criminal files. While it's not as glamorized or dramatized as Law and Order, being there showed me how important and rewarding the work is.