Both have pertinent experience, but Lowndes County residents will have to decide whose experience matters more.
Allison Pritchard Kizer and Chuck Easley, the two candidates gunning for the Lowndes County prosecuting attorney position, spoke at the Columbus Exchange Club meeting Thursday just a couple weeks prior to the Nov. 8 general election.
Democratic candidate Easley has more than 30 years experience as a lawyer, many of the years as a public servant, and some time as a public defender. Kizer, the Republican candidate, touts more than 15 years working in the Youth Court, experience working with outgoing county prosecutor Tim Hudson and seven years as Lowndes County’s Guardian Ad Litem.
In their speeches, they both focused on juveniles and the county prosecuting attorney’s important role in the Youth Court system.
“We have a serious problem in this county,” Easley said, noting juveniles commit more than 50 percent of the crimes in Lowndes County.
“I don’t need to tell you how widespread crime is in this county or how drugs are everywhere.”
Kizer later agreed and said the Youth Court work is “probably the most time-consuming” part of the position.
The county prosecuting attorney represents the state in all felony matters before the county’s justice courts and county courts. Additionally, the county attorney represents the state in criminal cases appealed from county court to circuit court, can present any matter to the grand jury and has full responsibility for all misdemeanor youth court proceedings and all other cases not specified to the district attorney.
Easley told the Exchange Club members he is “very conservative,” and is pro-life.
“I probably have many of the same values as many of you,” he said to the Exchange Club audience.
Easley has worked felony and misdemeanor cases and has a conviction rate above 90 percent.
Kizer said she has the past 15 months in the Youth Court system and knows the system well. She has defended numerous parties in cases, but she said she has spent the majority of her career “defending the victim.”
Kizer stressed the importance of serving abused and neglected children, citing statistics that indicate a child is abused each 10 seconds and more than six million are abused each year in the United States.
“This job requires experience, fairness, passion and understanding, which I bring to the table,” Kizer said.
Both candidates said funding restrictions prohibit the program options for some juveniles with special needs or mental-health issues.
Easley suggested stricter supervision for mental-health juveniles in the county in hopes of helping them. Due to a lack of immediate funding, he proposed searching for grants for ankle monitors, house arrest programs and more probation officers.
“They spend a few years in the Juvenile Court and then they have a violent crime or are caught selling drugs and are up in circuit court,” Easley said.
The Exchange Club hosts weekly political forums as the November elections approach. The speeches are held at the Columbus Country Club. The last set of speeches will take place next week when the club hosts Lowndes County Chancery Clerk candidates Susan Robinson and Lisa Younger Neese.
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