District
Attorney seats are up for re-election this November across the state of
Louisiana.
The first
debate between candidates for the St Tammany District Attorney Office is
scheduled for Tuesday, August 26, at John Davis Center, 61100 North 12th St., Lacombe, at 6 PM. The
candidates are Roy Burns, Alan Black, and Brian Trainor.
The
District Attorney (Prosecutor) is the most powerful law enforcement official in
the criminal justice system, even more than judges or sheriffs. The DA is free
to dismiss a case, file more charges against an offender or transfer that case
to a Federal Court. There is no oversight that requires him to assure racial or
ethnic equality before the law. He can
cause an offender to plead guilty even if innocent by overcharging the
offender.
The measure
of a DA’s success may be the number of convictions they achieve. In St. Tammany
that is 89%, mostly plea bargains not trial by jury. Perhaps this is the Why
and the How Louisiana became the “Prison Capital of the World”.
Please plan
to attend this candidate debate sponsored by Concerned Citizens of St. Tammany.
Here are some
questions that you can ask in addition to your own:
2. What is your position regarding special courts (drug and mental health) and diversion programs that are designed to keep people out of jails and prisons?
3. What is your position regarding the prosecution of individuals found with small amounts of marijuana?
4. What can your office do to assist the formerly incarcerated to transition back into society?
5. What changes will you make regarding your office’s policy on plea bargains, if any?
6. Can you assure an ongoing review of charges across racial and ethnic groups to assure all segments of the community are treated equally?
7. Do you feel that offenders understand the lifetime disadvantages (barriers to employment, housing, voting, licensing, access to education, food stamps, etc.) involved if they “plead” guilty to a felony?
--Bonnie Schmidt
related article:
"3 Announced St. Tammany DA Candidates Raised More than $148,000 in Latest Reporting," Heather Nolan, 06 August, 2014, nola.com.
