District Attorney Charles Branson files for third term
Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announces he will seek a third term in office. Enlarge video
Douglas County District Attorney Charles Branson announced Tuesday he would seek a third term in office.
The county’s top prosecutor, a Lawrence Democrat, filed for re-election Friday with the Kansas Secretary of State’s Office.
“We’ve done a lot of new programs, a lot of innovation over the years,” Branson said in a Tuesday morning interview. “But one of the things we really continue to do is try to educate the public about this office, about crime, about crime prevention and about the things that we can do to make the community safer, to make the community a better place to live.”
Branson, 42, defeated incumbent District Attorney Christine Kenney, a Republican, in 2004, and he ran unopposed for his second term in 2008.
He supervises 13 prosecutors and 14 support staff members. The office’s budget is $1.5 million, and it handles prosecution of all felony offenses in Douglas County and misdemeanors that do not fall under a city’s jurisdiction.
Branson, who has a business administration degree and law degree from Kansas University, on Tuesday touted establishing a consumer protection division in his office and a crime victims compensation board in Douglas County during his current term.
The deadline for candidates to file is noon Friday.
If needed, a primary election for county offices is Aug. 7. The general election is Nov. 6.
Comments
somebodynew 11 months, 3 weeks ago
While not a surpise to me, I am GLAD to see this. I haven't agreed with everything he has done, but he has done a great job. Yes, I know most of the 'grunt' work is done by his employees, but he has picked a good crew and runs a good office.
Go Charles.
begin60 11 months, 3 weeks ago
The DA's office has big conflict-of-interest issues! They serve the interests of corrupt KU officials, for instance, at the expense of honesty and decency. The incompetence I witnessed in Lawrence and the illegal deals that lawyers do, including prosecutors in Douglas County is appalling. My freaking lawyer admitted that attorneys lie to everyone but each other. Such crooked and cruel and ignorant , soulless people! They muzzle people under threat of abusing them with the powers of law. The level of legal knowledge and respect is not high. It boils down to might is right.That's just not a civilized or intelligent way to run things.
Did_I_say_that 11 months, 3 weeks ago
"My freaking lawyer admitted that attorneys lie to everyone but each other."
Do you see anything wrong with that statement?
LarryNative 11 months, 3 weeks ago
Lol
rockchalker52 11 months, 3 weeks ago
Didn't think this was gonna be the thread that pick-a-screen-name was gonna rant about. Thought it woulda been the article about KU being a great place to work. Hmm, maybe I'll check back on that one...
cheeseburger 11 months, 3 weeks ago
We don't need four more years of someone who is soft on crime. We need someone tough in that office - a real go-getter.
catiefan 11 months, 3 weeks ago
The DA enforces existing laws. If you want the laws to be tougher on crime, then you need to write your legislators. They are the ones who write the laws.
cheeseburger 11 months, 3 weeks ago
Not everything needs to be pled down or granted probation. A true sign of laziness. Face it - he's soft.
notwhatyouthink 11 months, 3 weeks ago
You are dead wrong. Charles and his office fail to file charges on many crimes, because it is not a sure win. Just look at the Booking recap on the sheriff website and see how many are released with no charges.
Look at 05/28/2012. There was an aggravated battery, two domestic battery, DWI 3rd and a criminal damage to property. All were released with no charges auth DA.
This is lame. Criminals get out before the victims finish making the report.
How about the two hit and run crashes where people were killed. Charles gave them a good slap on the hand.
ilovelucy 11 months, 3 weeks ago
Charles, you have my support! So glad you are running. Thanks-
srj 11 months, 3 weeks ago
I do agree with you sierraclub. I would like to see more time in this city for fatalities on DUI's, regardless if the other driver was drunk. Let a judge or jury decide to give them years or months.
All the Democrats should be safe in this county, but it's not like the young KU students will be as fired up to vote for Obama in 2012 like in 2008.
Slowponder 11 months, 3 weeks ago
There were approximately 2,000 criminal cases filed in Douglas County last year. That number has been relatively constant over the past 15 years. If we follow the Cheeseburger model and have no plea bargains, then we would have over 38 trials every week. We currently have six judges so if everyone demanded a trial, we would need 32 more judges, just to satisfy the Cheeseburger model of justice. 32 judges, 32 administrative assistants, 32 court reporters would add approximately $8M in additional salaries. We would also need a much larger courthouse with 32 extra courtrooms. Courtrooms are going for about $4.5M per courtroom, so add another $144M for courtrooms. 38 trials a week would require 42 veniremen for jury, which would mean we need just slightly less than 83,000 potential jurors per year. Shoot there are only 85,000 people in Douglas county counting all the kids. Frankly I can't afford the Cheeseburger model of justice on my tax bill.
Plea bargains are the lubricant that moves the criminal justice system. Plea bargains also keep taxes low, unless you subscribe to the Cheeseburger model of justice. Shoot that is no Cheeseburger model. That is a Rolls Royce on top of a Aston Martin, on top of a Murcielago totin' a Ferarri.
Gareth 11 months, 3 weeks ago
Now, now, Slowponder.
Don't go confusing the issue with those pesky FACTS.
smitty 11 months, 3 weeks ago
found by entering "when did plea bargain become corrupted" http://www.corrupted-justice.com/forums/viewtopic.php?t=5175&sid=51cf97fbdfa981c79b1a61bcc225d461
from the state's point of view, the main benefit of the plea bargain is that it saves time and money. Almost everyone acknowledges that the system would collapse if every case that was filed were to be set for trial; there is not enough money to try every case.
Experts point out some other benefits of pleas. Law professor Bruce Green tells FRONTLINE, "It… is in some ways fairer to witnesses and prospective jurors. Imagine if in all these cases, the victims and witnesses had to come to court to testify. And in all these cases, people had to leave their jobs in order to serve on juries. That would be very onerous for the public." Other experts note that pleas can get the accused out from under some harsh mandatory minimum sentences and rigid federal sentencing guidelines. And law professor Jonathan Oberman points out in his FRONTLINE interview, "… [a plea bargain] certainly is a good thing for someone who is guilty, someone who has factually done that which he or she is charged with doing, who is confronted with overwhelming evidence, and where the state is inclined to make some kind of offer because they would not want to put the victim, or families of the victim, or put the state, to the cost of proving the case at trial."
"So the result is that the system as a whole doesn't do what we count on it to do, which is to sort out the guilty people from the innocent people. It doesn't do that because the guilty people and the innocent people are all faced with the same pressure to plead guilty."
and another source says
The first plea bargains occurred in prosecution of victimless crime (liquor-selling violations) under mandatory sentencing laws. Critics of today’s sentencing practices in the drug war will not be surprised.
“Overworked judges of the last quarter of the century turned to plea bargaining for relief from their out-of-control civil caseloads, because they had far greater power to coerce pleas on the criminal side than to induce settlements on the civil side”
kanshawk 11 months, 3 weeks ago
terrrrrrrrible
JackMcKee 11 months, 3 weeks ago
At least our D.A. doesn't outsource all his litigation to Wichita law firms.
I'll vote for Branson. Unless someone better decides to run.
notwhatyouthink 11 months, 3 weeks ago
You don't think he is worthless. Just look here
http://www.dgso.org/web/index.php?option=com_wrapper&view=wrapper&Itemid=228
5 people released from the jail with no charges filed auth of DA.
Pitt_Mackeson 11 months, 3 weeks ago
He's one letter away from being the coolest D.A. ever! He'll be a vigilante - crime will pay!
smitty 11 months, 3 weeks ago
"So the result is that the system as a whole doesn't do what we count on it to do, which is to sort out the guilty people from the innocent people. It doesn't do that because the guilty people and the innocent people are all faced with the same pressure to plead guilty."
Yellow House owners can verify this. Guy Neighbors still hasn't gone to trial but has been incarcerated for 33 months for (not) being incompetent.
Marietta Parker and Terra Moorehead are on record in the transcripts saying " they (Carrie N and Guy N) needed to be taught a lesson. That lesson was for ....not taking a plea.
BAU in this corrupted process of plea bargaining that some would have us believe is USA justice.
Branson didn't get involved in this dirty case which is to his benefit. Some support from Branson for the whistle blowers on LE corruption would move me to vote for him.
smitty 11 months, 3 weeks ago
for clarification....GN is not now incarcerated ...thanks to his self representation(pro se) work....
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