If elected, I will combine the Juvenile Delinquency (criminal), Child Protection, and Child Support Divisions into one Children and Families Division. CFD will include attorneys and staff who will specialize in juvenile development and rehabilitation and who will specialize in the unique litigation required in juvenile courts.

Many children who become involved in the juvenile justice system will have both a delinquency and child protection case. Combining these systems into one division ensures expert staff from the County Attorney’s Office handles these cases. This also allows for Scott County Community Corrections probation officers and child protection social workers to work together more collaboratively to meet the needs of struggling youth in our community.

When rehabilitation isn’t possible in the interest of public safety, CFD staff must be capable of effectively litigating the unique process of juvenile delinquency cases. Attorneys must be able to litigate juvenile court trials, trials to terminate the rights of parents who abuse their children, to certify underage offenders as adults in certain cases, and to ensure minors who are a threat to public safety are closely monitored. This will require a special set of skills, which CFD will specialize in.

This reorganization will also save taxpayer money. As it currently stands, services and court appearances are being duplicated for children who have cases in both systems. If these services and hearings are combined, additional resources can be freed to address other deficiencies. (See Victim Services and Domestic Violence policies for more information about how these resources can be redistributed.) Children are the most vulnerable people in our society, and it is critical for the County Attorney’s Office to give children who encounter the justice system the best possible opportunity to get the services they need to avoid becoming lifelong repeat offenders. Creating CFD will ensure these kids get those opportunities to become productive members of society but will also ensure effective prosecution of those who are legitimate threats to public safety.

Historically, the Scott County Attorney’s Office has not prioritized staffing its youth divisions. Management and office culture have minimized the role of its juvenile attorneys and support staff.

As an attorney directly out of law school, I followed this path. I was assigned to the juvenile division with the understanding that I would move to adult prosecution once I had some experience under my belt.

The problem with that logic is that a juvenile attorney’s caseload includes offenses as minor as a tobacco ticket and as serious as First Degree Assaults and Criminal Sexual Conduct. I was thrown into jury trials for sex crimes before I had even prepared a trial for a low stakes disorderly conduct or theft.

Attorneys who work in the Children and Families Division will need to have a broad range of prosecution experience, including domestic violence and sex offense prosecution. They must also understand and be able to litigate child protection and child support matters. CFD will not be treated as the division to break new attorneys into the field. Attorneys and staff in CFD will need to have a passion for the safety and welfare of children.

The resources saved by CFD will primarily be directed to addressing Scott County’s domestic violence prosecution policy. In 2024, the Scott County Attorney’s Office convicted only 23% of charged misdemeanor domestic assaults and only 29% of felony domestic assaults. Since 2020, SCAO has averaged convictions on 26% of misdemeanor domestic assaults. These numbers are simply unacceptable.

If elected, I propose the following as policy changes to increase these conviction rates:

Timelines for charging: Domestic violence cases must be prioritized when making charging decisions. Victim engagement and participation and preservation of evidence are critical to charging and effectively prosecuting DV cases. The best way to ensure this is to contact the victim and make a charging decision as soon as the evidence can be effectively reviewed.

• Prosecutors must make a charging decision in all DV cases within 7 days of receiving police reports.

• If a prosecutor makes the decision not to charge a DV case, they must make an attempt to reach the victim first‍

• If a prosecutor decides to charge a DV case, they will make contact with the victim as soon as possible after filing the charges, within at least 7 days of charging

‍ Working together with court administration, a dedicated court calendar should be created for first appearances on DV offenses, with a quicker turnaround for scheduling than other offenses. This will allow victims to connect with services early in a case, providing them with support and making future cooperation more likely. It will also ensure appropriate no contact orders are in place to ensure the victim’s ongoing safety.‍ ‍

The County Attorney’s Office only has three victim advocates, who are already overwhelmed. To assist with these victims, community partners, such as Southern Valley Alliance, should be included to provide services to victims and ensure effective prosecution of dangerous domestic offenders.

‍Scott County prosecutors are not specifically trained on how to prosecute cases without victim cooperation. If elected, every attorney who handles domestic violence cases will have training specific to conducting trials without a victim available to testify. This will result in fewer domestic violence cases being dismissed or pled down to lesser offenses.

Ultimately, the Scott County Attorney’s Office is letting down domestic violence victims by its failure to provide necessary supports to ensure victim cooperation throughout a case. This has led to an unacceptably low conviction rate for domestic violence offenders in Scott County. Early intervention in DV cases is critical to ensure there isn’t an escalation to more serious offenses. ‍

Source of data: https://mncourts.gov/help-topics/court-statistics/publications-and-reports/district-court-criminal-charges-data

Treatment courts are one of the most successful innovations in the history of the justice system for purposes of rehabilitation and reintegration into the community. Treatment courts impose strict supervision through probation, while providing services to justice-involved individuals, such as veterans and those with mental health and chemical dependency diagnoses. Participants are expected to make multiple court appearances each month and to have regular meetings with a dedicated probation officer. Law enforcement also conducts regular check-ins at participants’ homes to ensure compliance and build relationships. This enhanced supervision ensures violations are addressed and interventions are delivered in close proximity.

Treatment courts use the leverage of a criminal conviction and potential incarceration to require participants to attend mental health and chemical dependency treatment, in addition to any other services deemed necessary by professionals on the treatment court team. Collateral factors, such as employment, housing, education, and driver’s license status are also addressed by the team. These wraparound services significantly decrease the likelihood these graduates will encounter the justice system again.

The success of Scott County Drug Court and Veterans Treatment Court has shown the effectiveness of these programs. If elected, I will advocate for the creation of additional treatment courts in Scott County. During my time as a prosecutor in Scott County, I collaborated with other county agencies to create the Scott County Veterans Treatment Court. I have proven I can implement these programs in Scott County and once implemented, these programs have changed the lives of Scott County residents, while increasing public safety.

In 2022, the incumbent county attorney unequivocally stated during our public debate that he did not support expanding treatment courts, but that he supported the ongoing work of Drug Court and Veterans Court within Scott County. Despite categorizing my work to create Veterans Court as simply “checking boxes,” my opponent failed to have anyone in his office check those boxes to ensure ongoing funding for the program. As a result, Scott County no longer has its own Veterans Court program, despite the promises of the elected county attorney in his last campaign.

For additional information on treatment courts see https://www.nadcp.org/treatment-courts-work/

The treatment court model of prosecution, and my proposal to create the CFD Division, cannot be effective without cooperation from partners across the justice system. The initial decision to bring a citizen into the justice system rests with the county attorney’s office, but the rehabilitation of that individual requires skills, abilities, and resources not found within that agency. The primary reason people become involved in the justice system is a lack of basic needs.

Those who don’t have stable housing, who can’t obtain employment, who struggle with chemical dependency, and who have unaddressed and untreated mental health conditions make up the vast majority of the population in the justice system any given day. The agency responsible for assessing these individuals, determining which services are appropriate, and ultimately providing these services is Scott County Human Services. The County Attorney’s Office should constantly strive to strengthen its relationship with Human Services to ensure effective delivery of services to those most in need.

Effective supervision is also necessary for those involved in the justice system. This supervision, provided by Scott County Community Corrections, is crucial to ensure citizens are participating in the services necessary for them to be rehabilitated, to take corrective action when necessary to protect public safety, and to build positive relationships. As with Human Services, effective prosecution can only be conducted with strong collaboration between these agencies.

Recruiting and retaining skilled employees is critical for the County Attorney’s Office. Salaries in neighboring Hennepin and Dakota Counties, as well as nearby Ramsey and Anoka Counties, are higher than here in Scott County. The County Attorney has limited ability to increase these salaries without approval from the county board. However, an effective county attorney can lobby the board for increased funding by presenting specific requests with data and evidence to support the need. Despite those efforts, Scott County will likely always struggle to compete with salaries in larger counties. This means there must be an increased focus on creating opportunities for employees in Scott County that may not exist elsewhere. The office must also ensure every employee feels as if they are a valued member of the team. No recommendation, new idea, or criticism, should ever be dismissed based solely on who brought it forward.

I left Scott County to work in Hennepin because I identified policies within the office that I believed were problematic. I sought the advice of senior attorneys within the office and consulted with other attorneys who echoed similar concerns. I attended a meeting with office leadership to voice these concerns and was immediately met with hostility and dismissal, particularly because I am a young attorney with no seniority in the office. This sentiment was later echoed by the county attorney. My proposals, shared by many within the office, were never considered on their merit simply because of an outdated and unofficial hierarchy.

This should never happen within a modern employer. Every employee in the county attorney’s office is a talented professional who is dedicated to upholding the justice system. Each of these employees interacts with the system in different ways and can provide valuable feedback about necessary changes. Making this a destination county for employment means allowing every employee to feel comfortable speaking his or her mind.

If elected, I am also committed to expanding Scott County’s law clerk programs. Law clerks are law school students who complete field work for credit or compensation. Many county attorneys’ offices recruit students from the three local law schools to handle basic hearings and conduct legal research and writing. This eases the incredibly difficult workload prosecutors already feel.

An expanded law clerk program also allows law students to become familiar with the justice system in Scott County for consideration upon graduation. I clerked in Scott County while in law school and was incredibly proud to serve my home community. When I became an attorney, there was no other law office I considered. I was able to jump in as soon as I was licensed because I had already been working within the county system for years.

The CA's Office should be making much better use of this valuable resource by actively recruiting students from the local law schools to clerk in Scott County. A formal law clerk program should also be established to develop and implement tailored training and policies for students and student supervisors.

The justice system’s primary responsibility is to serve the public. Scott County citizens’ involvement in the justice system is crucial. If elected, I will consistently work to increase the engagement between the County Attorney’s Office and the public. This will include creating and maintaining social media profiles, updating the website, and attending community meetings regularly. The community’s feedback regarding justice system policy should not be limited to voting once every four years. I am committed to increasing this engagement between election years and advocating for the citizens of Scott County in this community and in St. Paul.

The cash bail system is in need of reform. Most of the justice system consists of those with mental health and chemical dependency issues, who tend to have little or no financial resources. Even a small amount of cash bail imposed forces these individuals to remain in custody while their case slogs through the system. Meanwhile, those who can afford to post their bail return to the comfort of their home, regardless of their risk to public safety. Remaining in custody often forces individuals to admit guilt even when they aren’t guilty, simply to be released from jail. At the same time, those who post bail can have multiple hearings to contest evidence and negotiate settlement, all while continuing to work and sleep in their own beds.

While employed in Scott County, I was never trained on an official policy for requests for cash bail. The determination of an appropriate bail request is left to individual prosecutors who

charge cases and appear at bail hearings. This lack of standardized policy leads to wild variations in which a disproportionate bail amount is imposed on low level offenses, such as driver’s license violations, while violent crimes, such as domestic assault, may result in a much lower bail.

If elected, I will immediately work with staff to create a standardized cash bail policy which will consider the nature of the offense, the defendant’s criminal history, and the history of making or missing court appearances. Individual circumstances should still be considered by the prosecutor, but a standardized system would reduce disparities and ensure individual bias does not factor into a bail request.

I am also committed to exploring and implementing cash bail alternatives. Collaboration with Scott County Community Corrections will be crucial to ensure any alternative considered increases public safety while reducing the costs of housing inmates unnecessarily.

I began my legal career as a law clerk with the public defender’s office in Scott County.

Throughout my career, I have been a defense attorney and a prosecutor in both child protection and criminal prosecution. This has given me a unique perspective on how the justice system functions and its impact on those involved.

I firmly believe that the justice system functions most effectively when prosecutors and public defenders are equally paid and equally well resourced. Public defenders protect the constitutional rights of all Scott County citizens, they are the experts in the jurisdiction who have the best understanding of that judicial system. They know the judges and prosecutors and understand what a fair plea offer consists of. They resolve cases that should be resolved in order to ensure efficiency, but are also trial experts because of their incredibly high caseload.

It is critical for the county attorney to work collaboratively with the public defenders’ office. There will inevitably be clashes in the courtroom when necessary, but working together effectively to resolve cases and implement justice reforms is critical for the overall function of the justice system.

Public Defenders in Minnesota are only able to represent adults charged with criminal offenses and juveniles in the delinquency and child protection systems. There is no constitutional right to an attorney for adults facing a child protection case, civil commitment, child support, or eviction proceedings, despite the potential consequences of loss of liberty, loss of parental rights, and loss of housing. Hennepin County has created Adult Representation Services to provide expert attorneys to public defender-eligible clients facing these civil matters.

If elected, I would advocate for creating a similar organization in Scott County. Right now, the county contracts these civil cases to private attorneys. These contracts must be bid when they expire, which results in continually increasing costs. Attorneys who apply for these contracts are not always experts and often practice an adjacent area of law. This contract is often taken as part time work. ARS attorneys are staff and thus, are experts in their field.

Having experts leads to better quality representation for the clients, but just as importantly, leads to a more efficient and functioning system. Staff attorneys are familiar with the other justice partners involved in the system, have better knowledge of local resources for clients, and can be involved in policy discussions with other county partners. Like anything else, creating a new program like this requires an initial financial investment. The efficiency this change would create will save resources in the long run. Fewer families will become involved in the justice system. Those who do become involved will be involved for less time.

On January 1, 2027, the Scott County Attorney’s Office will need to comply with the Minnesota African American Family Preservation and Child Welfare Disproportionality Act, which imposes a higher standard to remove a child from the care of an eligible family and requires Scott County Human Services to provide more services to a family so children can be returned safely.

This is a significant legislative change to the child welfare system that should be addressed ahead of time to ensure compliance with the new law. Failure to capably respond to these changes could lead to children being left with parents in dangerous situations or returning a child home prematurely when safety is not ensured.

My current employer, Hennepin County, has been a pilot county for implementing MAAFPA. I have seen the practical effects of the legislation on the justice system. I have been involved in discussing MAAFPA policy, in litigating its constitutionality, and carry a caseload that includes MAAFPA cases. This has prepared me to be ready to effectively respond to and implement this new legislation, which is not currently the case in Scott County.