PORT ANGELES — Clallam County Prosecuting Attorney Chris Shea and challenger Deb Kelly faced off Tuesday, sparring over felony statistics in their first public debate.
Shea and Kelly are both running for Clallam County Prosecuting Attorney in the Nov. 5 general election.
“I don’t think the current office is doing a very good job of prosecuting criminal cases in this county,” said Kelly, a former deputy prosecuting attorney under Shea.
The number of felony convictions are decreasing despite an increase in the number of felony cases filed through the prosecuting attorney’s office, Kelly said.
Seventy-five percent of violent offenders convicted in Clallam County last year were sent to prison, compared to a 67 percent state average, Kelly said.
“I can do better,” she said.
Shea countered Kelly’s statistics, saying the figures are misleading.
“We have actually convicted more people of violent crimes than 20 other counties, so it puts us right in the middle,” he said.
The office’s caseload has also doubled since 1998 without an increase in attorneys, he said.
Tuesday’s debate, hosted by the Port Angeles Business Association, is the first of several candidate forums to be hosted by the organization leading up to the Nov. 5 election.
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The rest of the story appears in the Wednesday Peninsula Daily News Clallam County edition. Click on SUBSCRIBE to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.
