Snohomish County prosecutor needed; 2 vie for the interim job

While election season is over for most politicians, two candidates are in a heated battle for interim Snohomish County prosecutor.

The Snohomish County Council Wednesday will choose between veteran Deputy Prosecutor Mark Roe and city of Seattle Assistant Prosecuting Attorney Jim Kenny.

Roe highlights his 22-year career in the Snohomish County Prosecutor's Office handling death-penalty cases, child sexual assaults and other serious felonies. Kenny points to his administrative experience, including serving for the past six years as a District 1 Fire Commissioner overseeing a $30 million annual budget.

Former Prosecutor Janice Ellis stepped down Nov. 30 to take a job with the Tulalip Tribes. Because she's a Democrat with a year remaining in her term, the Snohomish County Democratic Party was charged with recommending candidates to replace her.

County precinct committee officers heard from both candidates and voted to support Kenny, although the County Council is not bound to follow the recommendation.

Kenny, 40, is a precinct committee officer himself who has worked on a number of county campaigns. He also ran successfully for fire-district commissioner and in 2006 for the County Charter Review Commission.

Roe, 50, acknowledges that he doesn't have the Democratic Party credentials that Kenny does, but said his years prosecuting serious crimes and building relationships with the courts, crime victims and county law enforcement are the key skills for the job.

And he argues that Kenny lacks needed trial experience. Kenny prosecuted just one adult felony jury trial, as a deputy prosecutor in Clark County more than a decade ago. Over the past 10 years in Seattle, the bulk of his trial work has been misdemeanor cases.

"You can't manage people if you don't know what they do and haven't done their job," Roe said.

Kenny, who lives in the Silver Firs neighborhood east of Mill Creek, said he has extensive trial experience with serious cases, including domestic violence, drunken driving and assault.

His colleague in the Seattle attorney's office, Ed McKenna, said, "A trial is a trial. What Jim also has is a very strong ability to work with others and resolve conflicts in the community."

For his part, Kenny questions whether Roe is temperamentally suited to be prosecutor. In 2006, Roe stepped down as the office's chief criminal deputy and told The Herald in Everett that the administrative job wasn't a good fit for him.

Roe, who lives in Stanwood, said he's ready to take on the top administrative job and worries that the office would suffer with a less-experienced attorney at the helm.

Kenny counters that the office needs more innovative approaches to reduce recidivism and that Roe "represents the status quo." Kenny advocates adding a mental-health court to the county's successful drug court as a way to address the root causes of crime.

For the past two years, Kenny has worked as a community prosecutor with the Seattle Police Department on chronic public-safety issues including transience, homelessness, open-air drug markets and night clubs.

The contest for prosecuting attorney has provoked strong passion among the Snohomish County legal community. Roe has received dozens of letters of support from current deputy prosecutors, the county public defender's office and victim advocates.

"The biggest difference I see between the two is experience," said Bruce Keithly, a Snohomish lawyer in private practice who supports Roe.

Roe has picked up endorsements from the Snohomish County Deputy Sheriffs Association, Gov. Chris Gregoire, Ellis and former Prosecutor Seth Dawson.

Kenny has been endorsed by a long list of Democrats, including Snohomish County Executive Aaron Reardon, Sheriff John Lovick, state Rep. Hans Dunshee and former county Prosecutor Robert Schillberg.

Lynn Thompson: 206-464-8305 or lthompson@seattletimes.com