How would Jackson County’s next prosecutor handle the death penalty, drug possession?
The three Democrats running for Jackson County prosecutor said that if elected, they would each make some changes to how the office handles certain cases, including different approaches to key issues like the death penalty, charging drug crimes and wrongful convictions.
Candidates Stephanie Burton, John Gromowsky and Melesa Johnson are competing to replace longtime Jackson County Prosecutor Jean Peters Baker, who is not seeking reelection.
Burton is a defense attorney who has worked with the Midwest Innocence Project and the Death Penalty Litigation Clinic.
Gromowsky was a defense attorney in between two stints with the prosecutor’s office, where he currently serves in the violent crimes unit.
Johnson is Kansas City Mayor Quinton Lucas’ director of public safety and supports a practice called transformative justice.
The primary election is on Tuesday, Aug. 6. See what else is on the ballot in Jackson County in the 2024 KC Voter Guide.
The winner of the Democratic primary for prosecutor will face Republican Tracey Chappell in the general election in November.
On the death penalty, Burton said she did not agree with charging Larry Acree with capital murder. The 70-year-old was arrested after a February encounter that left a police officer and court worker dead in Independence.
Prosecutor Baker announced in May that she would seek the death penalty.
“By the time he gets to the needle, he’ll be in his 80s,” Burton said at a forum on Wednesday, where all three Democratic candidates spoke.
Burton said pursuing death penalty cases is not fiscally responsible and that she opposes capital punishment because of previous cases where someone was found to be innocent.
Gromowsky said he was not a fan of the death penalty and noted that its use has disproportionately impacted people of color.
“But it is on the books and the next prosecutor is going to have to consider it for the appropriate cases. This is one of those cases,” he said of Acree’s charge.
Johnson said she would not continue to seek the death penalty in Acree’s case due to his age, but that it must be on the table in other situations.
“As much as I’ve been called ‘soft on crime’ during this campaign because I have the audacity to talk about programs and service deployment where appropriate, I do also feel like the death penalty is appropriate in a very limited and isolated set of circumstances,” she said.
All three candidates said they would strengthen the office’s Conviction Integrity Unit, which is tasked with reviewing claims of wrongful conviction. The unit has faced criticism for not following best practices and not having dedicated staff members.
Burton called the current unit “smoke and mirrors” and said she would write policies for the unit herself. That would include employing an independent attorney to work on the cases.
Gromowsky said the most important step was to prevent wrongful convictions in the first place.
Johnson said she would create a public portal where community members could submit exonerating evidence and look into Department of Justice grant opportunities to fund the unit.
To varying degrees, the candidates said they would make changes to how the office charges drug crimes. In July 2021, Peters penned a letter to the Kansas City Board of Police Commissioners saying her office would de-prioritize drug crimes unless they were connected to a violent crime.
Burton said she would begin charging drug possession cases, while Gromowsky said he would begin charging felony possession cases. They both said they would utilize diversion programs so that people who used drugs would have the opportunity to get treatment.
Johnson said she would continue Peters’ policy of declining non-violent possession cases. But she would pursue distribution level cases.
“If we don’t charge those cases, I see that as rubber stamping the distribution of poison in our communities,” Johnson said.
Polls will be open Tuesday from 6 a.m. to 7 p.m. in Missouri.
This story was originally published August 1, 2024 at 12:57 PM.
