PORT ANGELES — Lauren Erickson announced on Monday that she is running for Clallam County prosecuting attorney.
An administrative law judge and practicing Port Angeles attorney, Erickson joins David Fox of Port Angeles and Larry Freedman of Sequim in a bid to run against incumbent Clallam County Prosecuting Attorney Deb Kelly.
Erickson, Fox and Freedman are running as Democrats. They will face off in the Aug. 17 primary with Kelly, and the top two vote-getters will advance to the November general election.
Kelly is seeking a third term as prosecutor. She defeated incumbent Chris Shea in 2002 and ran unopposed in 2006.
Erickson is a former Clallam County deputy prosecuting attorney, district court judge pro tem and served for six years on the Port Angeles City Council. She resigned from the City Council in 2006 because of a health reasons and increasing professional obligations.
Erickson said poor management in the prosecutor’s office is costing county taxpayers justice and money. She cited an ongoing age-discrimination lawsuit filed by four former employees of the office.
Erickson sued the county to obtain information about the age-discrimination lawsuit, which she says has already cost the taxpayers more than $400,000 to defend.
“Apparently, the chief deputy for the prosecutor’s office believed that information should be withheld from the public,” Erickson said in a news release.
“Rectifying the problems plaguing the Prosecutor’s Office will take much more than empty promises of change as has been done by my opponents.”
She said the Prosecuting Attorney’s Office is poorly managed and lacks organizational structure, causing trial delays and convictions overturned on appeal for basic errors.
Erickson has tried more than 60 felony jury trials in Clallam County Superior Court, including attempted murder, vehicular homicide and child sex offenses.
If elected, Erickson would “immediately address personnel issues, fix the lopsided management structure of the Office, work to correct the county’s poor responses to public disclosure requests, stop continually asking taxpayers to fund unnecessary positions, and foster better communication with the defense bar,” her news release said.
