He was elected in 1918 as a member of the
New York State Senate (20th D.), serving in
1919 and
1920. As a State Senator he was active in urging an investigation of
William Hamilton Anderson of the
New York Anti-Saloon League. In December 1924, he was appointed by D.A.
Joab H. Banton as an Assistant D.A. of New York County. In 1927, he was appointed by Mayor
Jimmy Walker as a
city magistrate to fill the vacancy caused by the retirement of
Norman J. Marsh. In November 1933, Dodge was elected
New York County District Attorney with promises to clean up the office by eliminating leaks. Leaks in the prosecution of racketeering cases had earlier led to intimidation of witnesses, thereby allowing more notable criminals to escape prosecution. His plan was to provide to the
grand jury only the minimum information required to receive an indictment.
Runaway grand jury In 1934, a grand jury was convened to investigate gambling in the city. The grand jury sat for 11 months, but resulted in only a few prosecutions. Charges were made that politicians were regularly fixing gambling cases. A memo by Mayor
Fiorello La Guardia's office showed that between February 1 and September 30, 1934, 91% of the gambling cases brought by police never even came to trial, and of those that did come to trial, one third ended in fines usually under $50. On March 4, 1935, Dodge convened a grand jury to investigate gambling, and in particular the actions of
Dutch Schultz. The grand jury spent its time with other cases and information on witnesses was being leaked. Grand jurors complained that only junior investigators were assigned to them. Gambling kingpins were quoted in the newspapers boasting that they would never be indicted. The jurors complained in open court about the problems on May 7, 1935, which was widely reported by the city newspapers. On May 22, 1935, Dodge agreed to appoint a special prosecutor from a list prepared by the
New York County Lawyers Association. He balked at appointing any of the Republicans on the list because he considered them political opponents of Democrats. Instead, he selected H. H. Corbin, a compromise candidate proposed by former Republican Governor
Nathan L. Miller, despite objections by the grand jurors. When the juror objections were made public, Corbin refused the appointment. The "runaway" grand jury disbanded in June, still complaining that the cases were not adequately being investigated. On June 24, 1935, Governor
Herbert H. Lehman said a new investigation would occur. Of the four names that were put forth, only
Thomas E. Dewey accepted the task; he brought a series of successful prosecutions. Dodge chose not to run for re-election in 1937, and he left office at the end of his term in December 1937. Republican Thomas Dewey was elected in November to succeed him as New York County Attorney. It remains unclear whether Dodge criminally profited from the events. It was revealed that gangster
Dutch Schultz paid $15,000 for his election. His patron Hines was quoted in his own trial as saying Dodge was "stupid, respectable, and my man." Dodge was never formally charged with any wrongdoing. ==Death and legacy==