Candidates in race for Baltimore County's top prosecutor face off over public safety in first debate
The three candidates for Baltimore County State's Attorney addressed public safety, the handling of sexual assault and juvenile crime cases, and the modernization of the office in a debate hosted by WJZ and The Banner.
WJZ Investigator Mike Hellgren and Céilí Doyle, one of The Banner's regional reporters covering Baltimore County, moderated the hour-long forum on Thursday.
The debate
Scott Shellenberger has led the office for almost 20 years and faces two challengers: Laura Lipscomb, who heads the Baltimore City State's Attorney's Office Conviction Integrity Unit, and Sarah David, who handles public corruption cases with the Maryland State prosecutor's office.
"We have been keeping you safe here in Baltimore County, and I intend to do that for another four years," Shellenberger said in his opening remarks. "Our non-fatal shootings over the last five years have dropped, and we continue to aggressively prosecute violent offenders—and I will continue to do that with those 64 lawyers that I have."
His challengers hit back that crime remains a top issue on voters' minds, particularly crime committed by juvenile offenders.
"We lead in the state in juvenile crime under his leadership, and it's not because we're not arresting kids, because in Baltimore County, we have 39 juvenile arrests per 1,000 juveniles," David said. "That's higher than Baltimore City at 25 and higher than Maryland at 27 and the entire United States at 24."
Lipscomb told the crowd gathered at Towson University's StarTUp at The Armory, "I am absolutely disgusted right now with the juvenile crime that we are seeing in our community. I am disgusted. It is out of control, and we have got to get it under control. One of the ways that we do that is that we do not pass laws that handcuff prosecutors from charging juveniles as adults when appropriate."
Shellenberger said it is critical to rehabilitate young offenders before their crimes escalate into something more serious but said accountability is necessary if they do.
"If you're 16 and 17 and you commit a carjacking, you should be treated as an adult," Shellenberger said. "The people who are supporting Ms. David believe that all juvenile cases should start in juvenile court and make me waive them up to adult court."
David has the endorsement of Maryland Gov. Wes Moore, among other prominent Democrats, and has widely outraised the other candidates in campaign contributions.
Both David and Lipscomb have criticized Shellenberger, claiming his office is not modern and he does not do enough community outreach and post data online for the public to access.
"Modernization is about coming together and saying we need an office that is responsive to the public," David said.
She told the crowd, "Modernization does not mean having a laptop. It means having a vision and the experience to execute that vision to make the entire community safer."
Shellenberger defended the way he runs the office. "We are very modern. We are right on the cutting edge all the time," he said, citing technology used to present cases in the courtroom.
Shellenberger also defended his record on sexual assault cases.
David claimed, "It's a system that Mr. Shellenberger has overseen that has consistently failed victims and failed to make Baltimore County safer."
Shellenberger cited the convictions of Michael Johnson in an attack on his girlfriend and of daycare van driver and former police officer James Weems.
"We know how to do these cases. We work on them all the time," he said.
Shellenberger also addressed concerns regarding turnover in his office.
"We have young people who bring us new ideas and good thoughts and energy, and then we have experienced people who learn how to train and lead by example," Shellenberger said. "The important factor is invariably they come in—usually crying on a Friday—and they say to me, boss and everybody calls me Scott, 'Scott, I have to leave. I'm getting married. I have to make more money. I can't just be a lawyer at the age of 30, and I'm making $90,000 a year when my friends are making much more.' I had to make that choice, and I did. I was lucky enough to come back. It happens, but we are always able to fill those positions with good, young lawyers who are very solid, and they take over and move up in the system."
Lipscomb noted attrition is a problem in many state's attorney's offices, but she said, "When morale dips, when there's no confidence in the leader, attrition is going to be a problem."
What's next?
There is no Republican in the race, meaning the Democratic Party primary is crucial to the direction of the office.
Early voting starts June 11 and the primary is June 23.
"It's time to bring in those fresh ideas and fresh concepts because that's what makes our systems better," David said.
Lipscomb promised voters, "You will get a fighter who will turn this ship around."
Shellenberger countered that voters want consistency. He closed the debate by saying, "I run a very good office. We do a good job. We've been keeping you all safe for 19 years. I want to keep you safe for another four."
