I agree wholeheartedly with the premise of Bonnie Schmidt’s letter, headlined “District attorney qualifications matter” (Herald, May 30.) When I look at the qualifications and experience of the two candidates, however, I come to a very different conclusion.
One might surmise, as Schmidt implies, that Ben Lammons has moved from job to job and this somehow makes him less qualified to be our district attorney, or one can look, as I do, at the breadth of experiences he has had and how those experiences better qualify him for district attorney.
For 21 years, Lammons has been a prosecutor, demonstrating his commitment to those victimized by crime. I met Mr. Lammons at a Carver’s meet-and-greet. I was impressed by his thoughtfulness and his positions. He also believes strongly in restorative justice programs such as drug court and mental health court. Contrary to Schmidt’s assertion, these programs were created by Sarah Law and Martha Minot, not Christian Champagne.
Lammons recognizes that there are times when alternatives to incarceration are not appropriate. Champagne’s career has been littered with mistrials and plea deals. Mistrials are costly to the public and revictimize the victim – hardly qualifications for La Plata County’s top prosecutor.
During a chance meeting with an attorney from the public defender’s office – someone who had worked with both candidates – the conversation turned to Lammon’s better qualifications for DA. Just recently, he received the endorsement of the Fraternal Order of Police. Like them, I will be voting for Ben Lammons June 28.
Remember too that the primary will determine who becomes district attorney. One can change voter affiliation to vote in the primary and have a say in who becomes the county’s top prosecutor.
Denise Bohemier
Durango
Editor’s note: An unaffiliated voter can affiliate with one of the political parties from June 21 through Election Day at any of La Plata County’s three Voter Service and Polling Centers. The last day for affiliated voters to change their affiliation was May 31.
