ONLINE ONLY: Candidates for county seats face off

Local candidates faced off on many Monroe County issues in a debate Thursday night, including the overcrowded jail situation and the institution of night court.\nIvy Tech Community College of Bloomington and the League of Women Voters hosted the debate for the contested seats of Monroe County Prosecutor, Sheriff and Circuit Court Judge, seats V and VIII. Beginning with the candidates for county prosecutors, the debates for each position followed the same format beginning with a two-minute opening statement, followed by 60 seconds to answer each question posed either by members from a panel or from the audience, and finally 60 seconds for closing statements.\nThe debate for prosecutor began with the incumbent, Republican candidate Carl Salzmann, Monroe County's prosecutor for the past 12 years. Salzmann talked about his background, listing experience in the army, his gradutation from the police academy with honors and his law school training. Salzmann said early in his career he witnessed a system that concentrated primarily on adults. He said he understands the importance of the juvenile system. Other than talking about his involvement in several current programs such as Drug Court, Salzmann mentioned a drop in felonies and misdemeanors while he has held the position.\nSalzmann's opponent Democrat Chris Gaal focused his opening speech on change, communication and decreasing violent crimes. Gaal has had experience as an attorney, held positions at the local government level, graduated from IU's law school and taught law at the Kelley School of Business. He also said he wants to work with the jail to create a new re-entry program, he said.\nResponding to a panelist's question regarding the overcrowding in the county jail, Gaal said he felt not everyone in jail needed to be there. With a majority of people in jail suffering addiction problems, those not a threat to others should be treated outside of jail, he said. Gaal said that people in jail for violent crimes are the ones who must stay. He felt that cases should not drag on forever. Some of his ideas for solving the overcrowding in the Monroe County Jail are day reporting, addiction treatments and new re-entry programs.\nSalzmann explained that when the jail was built in 1986 it was already near capacity. A study concluded that the jail was overcrowded and a new one must be built by 2005. Salzmann felt that every alternative that could be thought of has been tried, and there is "no more elasticity in the system." He concluded by saying there were only 10 people in jail awaiting a trial more than six months and that he felt his track record was excellent.\nAnother panel member posed a question about a 70 percent repeat offender rate. Salzmann responded first by saying that the community has been proactive in diverting as many cases as possible.\nGaal explained that 70 percent was an average and that the number was as high as 80 percent a month ago. He views this as failing, he said. He also said misdemeanors were down because fewer were being filed. He again stressed his advocation of new re-entry programs and mentioned working with the New Leaf-New Life organization.\nResponding to a panel question regarding the candidate's most important goal, Gaal said he wants to decrease violent crime, mentioning a shooting that occurred in Bryan Park in the late spring. \nSalzmann explained that the pre-trial diversion program accounted for many of the misdemeanors being dismissed. He felt the program was important for a community that supports education to have because young people need a second chance to keep misdemeanors off their record. He also claimed the recidivism rate within the pre-trial diversion program was 15 percent. \nThe next contested seat was Monroe County Sheriff. Republican candidate Brad Swain and Democratic candidate James Kennedy faced off. \nKennedy, a former chief of police and a retired army officer, talked about letting the community know what's going on bi-monthly with reports on the miles driven by squad cars, among other things. Swain, who has 20 years of experience with the Monroe County Sheriff's Department and has been a detective for the past ten years, talked about attending to the spiritual needs of inmates. He addressed new programs but wanted to check all new programs for overlapping qualities of already existing ones so as not to add to the work of the already over-burdened jail staff. Both candidates said they want to increase the patrol staff, which serves the same size population as the city of Bloomington and covers five times as much land. \nA question posed by a member of the audience addressed the enforcement of physical fitness policies. Swain said he would use strategies such as pay incentives and promotions related to physical fitness policies but noted that courts have historically overturned physical fitness policy enforcement cases. Kennedy talked about influencing the civilian merit board to pass stricter physical fitness requirements as long as they are job related. The sheriff appoints three of the five members of this board.\nThe candidates for Circuit Court Judge, seat VIII, were incumbent Republican Jeff Chalfant and Democratic candidate Theresa Harper. Both candidates said they wanted to provide night court for those who have to miss work to appear in court during the day. Chalfant talked about being short on court rooms and needing a comprehensive cost analysis study to determine what is possible with the funds available. He said he did not know what was the best solution.\nHarper also talked about conducting a cost-benefit analysis for the idea of night court. Harper said she is in favor of night courts for those required to have frequent hearings.\nCandidates for the final debate over the position of Circuit Court Judge, seat V, were Republican Francie Hill and Democrat Valeri Haughton. Both candidates supported the use of the Victim-Offender Reconciliation Program. Haughton said the program should be used because it often helps each party understand the situation. Hill said it was a "terrific program," and she was glad to have it as an option, but it would not work in all situations.