Our opinion: A voter’s guide to the state attorney’s race

In an election year marked by well-entrenched incumbents leaving local offices and endorsing long-serving lieutenants as their successors, the Democratic primary for state attorney stands out on the Aug. 30 ballot.

Measuring by experience and somewhat differing views on what the office needs, the 2nd Judicial Circuit would be well-served by either Assistant State Attorney Jack Campbell or former prosecutor Sean Desmond.

Both men stress the need for community involvement and improved communication between the 44-lawyer State Attorney’s Office and the 20 police agencies in the Big Bend region, as well as improved use of technology.

Willie Meggs, who has been the area’s top prosecutor for 32 years, has endorsed Campbell, one of his top deputies for 15 years. Desmond, who worked two stints for Meggs, has worked both sides of the legal system, as a defense and civil attorney in recent years.

Meggs has been critical of Desmond — who, by nature of the political game, has had to criticize the office itself in drawing sharp contrasts between himself and Campbell. Although Meggs has contributed to his aide’s campaign and endorsed him politically, he has said he was sticking up for his whole staff — not just Campbell — in rebutting Desmond’s criticism.

Politically, Campbell has some marked advantages. He is the son of the late Leon County Sheriff Larry Campbell and, through Aug. 12, campaign finance records show he has raised $188,000 and spent $139,000 in a year of campaigning.

Desmond, who began running in 2014 — about a year before Meggs formally announced his long-anticipated decision not to seek a ninth term — reported contributions of $109,000 and expenditures of $86,000.

Both men’s financial reports read like a roll call of local law firms and prominent attorneys.

Campbell is not asking anyone to vote for him as a tribute to his well-respected father or his endorsement by Meggs, but he clearly represents continuity in an office that tries 250 to 280 cases a year.

Here are some of the issues the two tackled in an Editorial Board meeting.

Crime, collaboration key to state's attorney candidates

High-profile cases

Located across the street from the State Capitol, the office often handles politically sensitive cases involving state legislators and some agency officials — not to mention sensational accusations against college athletes.

When asked about it, Desmond answered – rather naively, we thought – “I will look at every single case the same exact way every single time. ... We need to make sure our complete approach to how we handle cases is uniform across the board.”

Campbell noted – more practically, we thought – “The fact of the matter is that when you have a high-profile case, whether it’s an FSU football player, a member of the media, a member of the Legislature, it creates its own momentum. ...When you have somebody high-profile, you’re going to have y’all (the media), you’re going to have a lot of people who are talking about it, starting to spin and control the story.”

He went on to say it takes experience to recognize those situations, be able to deal with them appropriately and withstand the massive pressure and scrutiny such cases bring.

For the record, both Desmond and Campbell vowed that political bigshots and star athletes would get no more, nor any less, justice than any unknown resident busted by Tallahassee Police officers or Leon Sheriff’s deputies.

Community outreach

Desmond maintains that the powerful prosecution office is disconnected from communities of the Big Bend. He said he would hold quarterly “town hall meetings” with citizens, to hear concerns about unequal treatment, and would work with police agencies to promote training in “civility and professionalism.”

“We’re at a boiling point, a powder-keg time,” Desmond said.

Campbell said there is “a real disconnect” nationwide between citizens and police, which he sees reflected in juries that seem skeptical of prosecution.

Crime

Leon County’s per-capita violent crime rate has led the state, two years running, and both men said they would work to improve technology in the office.

Campbell said that when a police officer files a crime report from a laptop mounted in the front seat of a patrol car, a copy should automatically pop up on his own computer queue. Desmond said “the technical component is very critical,” but so is the turnover of staff attorneys.

He said the office should work with the FSU law school to recruit young lawyers, seeking a three-year commitment. Desmond said the would like to double-team the high-profile cases and major felonies, which he said are all too often prosecuted now by an experienced attorney and a rookie. He’d also like to expend fewer resources on non-violent felony offenses and minor probation violations.

Prosecutors versus police

There has been tension between prosecutors and police in some major cases, like the rape allegation against quarterback Jameis Winston — whom Meggs declined to prosecute — and the current prosecution of two men in the murder of FSU law professor Dan Markel. E-mails between City Hall, TPD and the State Attorney’s Office have documented disagreements over how the case is being investigated and how decisions are made to prosecute or not bring charges.

“There’s been a rift,” Desmond said, noting that the Police Benevolent Association has remained neutral in this race. In 2012, the police union backed Meggs’ opponent.

Campbell said, however, that “some of the best thought is when there’s a tension” between police and prosecutors — who have vastly different levels of proof required in making a case. He said Meggs’ office has good relationships with police agencies, despite professional disagreements some times.

Conclusion

Desmond said leaving the office, returning, and then leaving again “opened my eyes very wide as to how and why the office was on the wrong path.”

Campbell said his long experience as a prosecutor, preceded by some work as a trial lawyer, has been supplemented by work as an administrator — now overseeing the whole felony division of Meggs’ office.

In November, the winner of the Democratic primary will face Republican Pete Williams, a former statewide prosecutor who narrowly lost to Meggs in 2012.