Newton Observer News Enterprise

The Newton O-N-E asked me to respond to their questionnaire for the DA candidates. I did so, but they just notified me that due to lower-than-expected ad revenue, they're only going to run the answers of those candidates who face a May primary. Since I went to all that work, though, I thought I'd go ahead and post my answers here. So, without further ado, here they are:

Observer News-Enterprise

Candidate Questionnaire

1. History in office or experience that makes you a good candidate for elected office: I have been a criminal and civil attorney in the 25^th District for more than fifteen years, trying numerous cases in District and Superior Court throughout all three counties. I have also been on the Lenoir City Council for more than six years. I am prepared to handle not just the courtroom, but also the political pressures that go along with the job.

2. What do you see as the biggest issues facing this position in coming years, and how do you plan to address them? First is restoring the public’s faith in the District Attorney’s Office after some public embarrassments. Second is managing a three-county office on a continually tightening budget from Raleigh as the state’s budget crisis continues. I will act with honesty and integrity as your District Attorney. I will meet with the assistant district attorneys and their staff regularly to offer as well as receive feedback. I will focus the office’s increasingly limited resources in the most effective way possible, by aggressively prosecuting violent criminals as well as those who would seek to defraud us, steal our property, or endanger the safety of those of us on the roads.

3. What makes you the best candidate? In addition to my years as a trial attorney in this district, people have seen from my actions and votes on the Lenoir City Council that I am a man who stands for his principles and will not compromise in the face of well-organized opposition. I will make sure that the Office of District Attorney will aggressively and effectively seek to convict offenders, while it will also leave you alone if you respect other people’s rights, persons, and property.