Wake County held a forum at Campbell Law School Tuesday night where people could listen to all the DA Candidates answer questions. We left with two questions still to go, but by the time we left, I knew who my top three (out of 6 were). With the primary May 6 (but I'll be voting absentee before then due to working the polls and new changes in the state's voting laws), it's time to start researching who you want your local leaders to be.
And here, they are, in order of how they were introduced (and I'm adding some of the question answers behind the introduction they gave for themselves):
Terry Swain - father of seven children, has a law firm in Wendell. His family owns Southern Comfort Heating & Air (his father founded it), attended Duke University, and he wants to see more electronic courts for people who are seeking dismissals, rescheduling, or things that do not require presentation before a judge or jury. Swain thinks the DA needs free will and reign to handle cases (in reference to Moral Monday cases); thinks current Calendar Call is not an efficient use of time or resources; thinks Domestic Violence Court can sometimes abuse power - not every bruise or broken leg is abuse - the DA needs leeway to act or not act; more courts should be either online or located in communities, not requiring people all over the county to drive into the "monolith" in Raleigh.
John W. Bryant - has worked in all aspects of a trucking business, in a medicine supply company, and he thinks the DA's office should stop crime before it reaches the courts. Bryant does not think a blank statement can be made on the Moral Monday cases; not all need deferral and should be handled on a case by case basis. Used a lot of quotes and references to questions, made some very valid points, but never articulated clear answers to questions.
Mr. No Name (he has a real name, but I didn't hear the announcer and he never gave it himself) - took some jabs at the other candidates for not having as much experience as himself; has worked 18 years in the Wake County DA's office, helped found the Special Victims Unit, supervises trial attorneys, has tried capital cases; No Name thinks Moral Monday cases are not the same as Civil Rights cases, saying they come planning to get arrested. If you dismiss those cases, then what next? You can't pick and choose what laws to prosecute; crime is crime. He also thinks that District Court is a mess, and there is a need for more special courts.
Jefferson Griffin - grew up on a farm, worked in the DA's office for four years; thinks different towns have different needs; Griffen agrees with referral for Moral Monday cases. If protesters broke the law, they do need to be prosecuted, but you don't place a higher priority on those cases than you would DUIs or crime; thinks domestic violence is a mindset, that court is overworked, and since there are no resources to make it efficient, the DA office should reach to community organizations and churches to provide programs that will help.
Laura (Lauren?) Freeman - clerk of Superior Court, started out in DA's office and Attorney General's office, public safety is her #1 priority; thinks Moral Monday protesters have a right to express their viewpoints and current offers are appropriate; Wake County led the state in 2012 in domestic violence cases, has worked on the Domestic Violence Court Fatality Review Team; thinks there needs to be more work with hospitals, child services and prevention case managers to closely monitor people charged; learn from other units in the state; says that new or specialized courts cost resources; dropped names in every answer she gave
Boz Zellinger - a prosecutor for the DA's office, had first court experience at age 11 when his sister witnessed a domestic violence crime on a field trip, despite the testimonies the man still got off and he thought justice wasn't served, county is experiencing rapid growth, now dealing with 12 year olds in gangs, need to change prosecution of JV crimes; stay ahead of technology; continue updates to Juvenile Court; Moral Monday cases are currently being dealt with in an efficient manner given the resources available, 2nd degree trespassing should be a lower priority, allow them to have community service for a guilty plea, should not prevent or interfere with the trials for DUIs; Domestic Violence - victims won't always press charges, so the DA's office must be trained to fight for their behalf, save resources by using local expert witnesses from NC State, InterAct for victims - use the community, lawyers in the office should answer phones, file their on files, etc when necessary. For special courts, there is a trust issue between the police and the community in some towns in the county, so there does need to be community prosecutors.
The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know.
And here, they are, in order of how they were introduced (and I'm adding some of the question answers behind the introduction they gave for themselves):
Terry Swain - father of seven children, has a law firm in Wendell. His family owns Southern Comfort Heating & Air (his father founded it), attended Duke University, and he wants to see more electronic courts for people who are seeking dismissals, rescheduling, or things that do not require presentation before a judge or jury. Swain thinks the DA needs free will and reign to handle cases (in reference to Moral Monday cases); thinks current Calendar Call is not an efficient use of time or resources; thinks Domestic Violence Court can sometimes abuse power - not every bruise or broken leg is abuse - the DA needs leeway to act or not act; more courts should be either online or located in communities, not requiring people all over the county to drive into the "monolith" in Raleigh.
John W. Bryant - has worked in all aspects of a trucking business, in a medicine supply company, and he thinks the DA's office should stop crime before it reaches the courts. Bryant does not think a blank statement can be made on the Moral Monday cases; not all need deferral and should be handled on a case by case basis. Used a lot of quotes and references to questions, made some very valid points, but never articulated clear answers to questions.
Mr. No Name (he has a real name, but I didn't hear the announcer and he never gave it himself) - took some jabs at the other candidates for not having as much experience as himself; has worked 18 years in the Wake County DA's office, helped found the Special Victims Unit, supervises trial attorneys, has tried capital cases; No Name thinks Moral Monday cases are not the same as Civil Rights cases, saying they come planning to get arrested. If you dismiss those cases, then what next? You can't pick and choose what laws to prosecute; crime is crime. He also thinks that District Court is a mess, and there is a need for more special courts.
Jefferson Griffin - grew up on a farm, worked in the DA's office for four years; thinks different towns have different needs; Griffen agrees with referral for Moral Monday cases. If protesters broke the law, they do need to be prosecuted, but you don't place a higher priority on those cases than you would DUIs or crime; thinks domestic violence is a mindset, that court is overworked, and since there are no resources to make it efficient, the DA office should reach to community organizations and churches to provide programs that will help.
Laura (Lauren?) Freeman - clerk of Superior Court, started out in DA's office and Attorney General's office, public safety is her #1 priority; thinks Moral Monday protesters have a right to express their viewpoints and current offers are appropriate; Wake County led the state in 2012 in domestic violence cases, has worked on the Domestic Violence Court Fatality Review Team; thinks there needs to be more work with hospitals, child services and prevention case managers to closely monitor people charged; learn from other units in the state; says that new or specialized courts cost resources; dropped names in every answer she gave
Boz Zellinger - a prosecutor for the DA's office, had first court experience at age 11 when his sister witnessed a domestic violence crime on a field trip, despite the testimonies the man still got off and he thought justice wasn't served, county is experiencing rapid growth, now dealing with 12 year olds in gangs, need to change prosecution of JV crimes; stay ahead of technology; continue updates to Juvenile Court; Moral Monday cases are currently being dealt with in an efficient manner given the resources available, 2nd degree trespassing should be a lower priority, allow them to have community service for a guilty plea, should not prevent or interfere with the trials for DUIs; Domestic Violence - victims won't always press charges, so the DA's office must be trained to fight for their behalf, save resources by using local expert witnesses from NC State, InterAct for victims - use the community, lawyers in the office should answer phones, file their on files, etc when necessary. For special courts, there is a trust issue between the police and the community in some towns in the county, so there does need to be community prosecutors.
The more I learn, the more I realize how little I know.
Comments