The Trip Walton Show | Second Chances, Strike Out the Stigma & Serving Justice: A Conversation with Lee County Alabama's DA Jessica Ventiere

In this powerful episode, Co-Host, Betty Burns, sits down with special guest, Lee County Alabama District Attorney Jessica Ventiere, for an honest and inspiring conversation about the challenges facing today’s youth, the power of redemption, and how the justice system can be a force for healing, not just punishment.

We dive into Strike Out the Stigma, an outreach initiative aimed at addressing teen mental health and suicide prevention. Jessica shares how this program brings students together in a fun, low-pressure environment to talk openly about the struggles they face in today’s social media-driven world.

We also open up about the difficulties of raising teens in the digital age, and how curated online perfection can distort reality and self-worth. Jessica gets personal, reflecting on her family’s journey, from her father’s felony conviction to her becoming the first college graduate in her family.

You’ll also hear about the DA’s Second Chance Job & Career Fair, which gives formerly convicted individuals real opportunities with major employers like Golden State Foods, offering not just a job, but a future. Just attending can help reduce court fees and create a new path forward.

Plus, Jessica discusses the exciting expansion of the Lee County court system, including the addition of a new Circuit Judge and the county’s first-ever dedicated Public Defender’s Office.

And in a poignant close, we talk about some of Jessica’s most impactful cases, Ava's Law and including her work on the Slesinski cold case, and how her own grandmother’s unsolved murder fuels her passion for justice.

This is an episode about grace, grit, and giving people the chance to rewrite their story.

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Transcript

SPEAKER_03: 0:01

Put a fire in your corn.

SPEAKER_01: 0:25

Welcome to another episode of the Shirk Walton Show. I am your host, Betty Burns, and today we have a special guest here joining us in the office. We've got Lee County District Attorney Jessica Ventieri, who I'm going to give a little bit, our listeners, a little background of who you are. Even though I think most know who you are, how would... Not bad on that. Well, I'm going to give a little background. So Jessica DeTere is a dedicated public servant and advocate for both justice and second chances. She's been our district attorney here in the county since 2021. By the fact, she is the first woman district attorney of the county. She's a native of Enterprise, Alabama, and Jessica graduated from Troy State University. That's right. We are joined. I love that you say that. Yes, I do. And listen,

SPEAKER_00: 1:11

not

SPEAKER_01: 1:11

Troy, Troy State. Troy State. Yes. So that was a while back. And she earned her law degree from Cumberland Law School. Cumberland School of Law. Yeah. I just say Cumberland. Cumberland. I'm just, that's all I say. What's Cumberland?

SPEAKER_00: 1:31

This is in Birmingham, right? It is. It's part of Stanford University. Okay. Not Stanford University. Although, if people think I went to Stanford for law school, they can, but that would not be true. So, that's not an accurate

SPEAKER_01: 1:42

statement. Okay, so we've got a few career highlights. In 2016, Jessica proposed legislation that increases the punishment for people who cause the death of a child through child abuse. That legislation, Ava's Law, passed unopposed. That's right. Which is a great law. It really is.

SPEAKER_00: 2:00

I love it. I have a little bit of pride every time I, I hate that it's there. I hate we have to have it, but I'm, I'm glad that we accomplished

SPEAKER_01: 2:08

that. I mean, that's, that's really good. And then in 2022, you received recognition for excellence in litigation of a capital and complex homicide case based in part on her work in the case of State Evaldo versus Richard Ennis. So that's the no body case with Lorraine Slisinski. It was a cold case with no body. You know, I knew her. Not like knew her, but like an acquaintance of her. Yeah. Yeah. It's crazy. It was that case. It was, you know, we all thought he did. Well, he did. So did the jury. But like back in the, like forever ago, everybody was like, yeah, I'm pretty sure that's the guy. Yeah. He's a creeper. Yeah. Well, he's not like a creeper. I'm not saying that you can look at, you can look at people and be like, guilty. But sometimes, sometimes,

SPEAKER_00: 2:59

Yeah. And with him specifically, like women either love him or they really get a bad vibe from him. Yeah. Definitely a bad vibe. Yeah. Bad vibe. Bad vibes.

SPEAKER_01: 3:08

For

SPEAKER_00: 3:09

sure. Red

SPEAKER_01: 3:09

flags.

SPEAKER_00: 3:10

All. Oh, yeah. All the flags. All the flags. The double reds, the double purples, like sea life. I mean, it's not a single green.

SPEAKER_01: 3:19

All right, and so Jessie's also active in our community, and I'm proud to call her my friend because we serve on the board for the Oakland Equals together. And so I'm super excited that she came to join us today. Some people may be wondering, as one law firm, we're also a criminal defense firm, why I would have the district attorney here, but just wanted to get stuff. We're all friends. That's

SPEAKER_00: 3:40

right. Hey, we have to work together. We're all responsible for making the machinery work, and so we have to keep To get along.

SPEAKER_01: 3:50

Absolutely. You have to. I mean, there's both sides to everything. Everybody deserves a right to a defense. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_00: 3:56

I always say that I really appreciate good quality criminal defense lawyers because I can't do my job without good defense lawyers. So, you know, I don't hate it. I actually really appreciate skilled advocacy on both sides because it just protects the system and the case altogether.

SPEAKER_01: 4:16

But we are not talking about criminal defense or defense cases today. We're talking about some of the great work that you guys are doing at the District Attorney's Office. And so we're going to talk about some mental health awareness that you guys have going on in the schools. And then we're going to talk about some rehabilitation and reentry for felons, connected felons and that kind of thing, and get them back in the community and going. So first, we're going to talk about Strike Out the Stigma. Tell me a little bit about what is Strike Out the Sigma. So I did a quick search before you came yesterday because I'm super prepared. I love it. Hey, you know. How about Strike Out the Sigma? And I actually saw a ton of stuff about it, like not just here. Now, I had just heard about it from talking with you about it with Juan and that kind of thing. But apparently it's kind of a national thing or is it just a word that people are using? Because I saw people do Strike Out the Sigma with like baseball. Yeah. Some other things. And so tell me a little bit about what it means here and what your involvement with the DA's office

SPEAKER_00: 5:19

is doing. Okay. So I guess I should, let me first start by saying that every DA's office, you know, there's a lot of autonomy when it comes to being DA. I mean, you know, we're tasked obviously with enforcing the law, but after that, we really get to decide kind of what office or what we want our, you know, office to stand for, to accomplish in the community. So I had decided kind of by accident that we were going to be really equal parts crime prevention and crime enforcement. And so anything that falls into that crime prevention part is what we really focus on with these outside programs that we do. And a lot of people don't know that when there's a death that occurs in the community outside of the care of a doctor, specifically something like a suicide, All of those cases, the circumstances around it have to come in front of the district attorney and I have to review all of those files and stuff. And so, of course, I'm very stricken by the number of adolescents that we have in Lee County who committed suicide. And I honestly just thought, you know, this is a part of my job and what can I do to help? sort of combat that role. And Strike Out the Stigma came about a couple of different ways. That was one. But also, when I first became DA, I went and visited with Bubba Copeland, actually, down at Smith Station. And he was telling me about the large number of teens who had committed suicide in Smith Station. And it really was... I couldn't believe it when he started putting the numbers on it. And then I went and visited... In Tuscaloosa, I was kind of, you know, visiting other DA's offices and I met a man whose sister had committed suicide when she was 12. And he had a whole initiative that he had kind of started up there. And so I kind of built on that a little bit. And strike out the stigma is, you know, it's just a catchy slogan. So I think it's just easy to kind of, you know, attach that to, you know, any kind of suicide or mental health issue. prevention event. But Strike Out with Stigma is really for us here in Lee County is an opportunity for us to kind of get a group of our targets audience, I guess you would say, which are going to be those adolescents anywhere from ninth grade to their senior year. That's where we really see them struggling a lot with not only mental health, but, you know, just fitting in and knowing what to do, fear of the future, but also they think they're supposed to have it all figured out so they don't talk about it. And they think that they're somehow weak if they go to counseling or if they need something to help regulate their chemicals in their brain. And we really just want to take the opportunity to, number one, encourage them to to talk about it, to encourage them not to be embarrassed about it, that this is something that we do. But more really, and also importantly, we want to take the opportunity to love on them. So, you know, this is the second year we've done it. And basically we get 120 students from all over Lee County and we take them for a day of bowling and we get them from all the schools. The teachers send us the names of the students and they kind of get to set the parameters about which kids they send us. So sometimes it's based on their attendance, but also targets those kids that maybe we want to know a little bit more. Maybe they're the kind of ones that just fly under the radar. They don't get a lot of attention because maybe they're not the excelling in grades or the top athlete, but yet they just need a little extra attention. And those of course are my, Favorite. Right. And so they just come in and we give them pizza and all the soda they can drink. And then we send them back to their teachers. And, you know, we love that. Oh, yeah. And they get an arcade card. So they get to play arcades and go bowling. And it's been a great experience. And it's something that I really would love to grow and get bigger because we're limited to 120 because it's just kind of what we can manage. Right. The schools help us get the kids there with transportation. So it's got a lot of logistical issues that have kind of hemmed us up a little bit and not being able to make it bigger. For instance, the main in Tuscaloosa, his event is more of a fundraiser. And then the funds go to promote mental health awareness in teens, whereas ours really focuses on the kids themselves. Right. And so it just kind of presents some issues and some differences that hopefully we'll be able to figure out and get creative and think outside the box and continue to grow that program. Absolutely. I do

SPEAKER_01: 9:58

think that, you know, it is astounding and truly unfortunate how many of our youth are falling under the radar. And when it comes to depression, I think a huge portion of that is social media and the idea that they have to be perfect for that situation. I've got a 15-year-old. I've got a 24-year-old and a 15-year-old, both girls. And I've limited my 15-year-old to just a certain amount of hours that she's allowed to be. She hates it. Oh, yeah. Hates it. Hates it, hates it, hates it. And it gets so upset about it. But I think that it's one of those things where people are always just putting their best foot forward when it comes to social media. And then they think this is how everybody is all the time. And they're not like that all the time. And then they think something's wrong with them. It's frankly shocking. It is. How many... I remember when that was like... I don't want to say it was almost a trend, but it felt like it was a trend of so many kids doing it. I have a student at Auburn High this year. It did. It

SPEAKER_00: 11:07

was crazy. And Smith's is still battling that. It still has a higher number in Smith's than it does in some of our other schools. And I don't know why. I don't understand why. what the, you know, catalyst is for that. But, you know, you're right about social media and, you know, I've had trainings, I don't know what you call them, but like civic events where I've talked to parents about social media and cell phone safety and really sex education type, like how to talk to your kids about sex and cell phone safety. And even with as much information as I know, if I had to go back and do it all over again, I made some critical errors in, social media and handling that, especially when all of our kids were home from school during the shutdown and stuff. But I made errors in that and really to the detriment of my own kids. And I just thought, here it is. I'm super have my eye out on this and still managed to screw it up. So it is a big time battle. I don't see it getting any better. And the most we can do is just be as vigilant as we can be and really take the opportunity to kind of talk about it and reassure our kids. That's one thing when, even when I'm talking to, I talk to students all the time, you know, to your point about social media, making it look like, you know, everybody has it all together. I always tell them, A little bit of my background, too, because I think that they can see me coming to speak to them and they think, you know, I was just born the district attorney and I didn't have to get here somehow. And, you know, they're always astonished to hear that I'm the first to go to college in my family. So, you know, first year of law school, obviously, and my parents were the first to graduate from high school and, you know, single parents. parent home. My father is a convicted felon. I tell them all of that stuff, not to get a pat on the back, but to say what someone may look like or what your impression of them is, is not always the case. And everybody has their struggles and you just got to keep moving. And I think that's what kills me so much about adolescent suicide is that As adults, we know it's temporary. Whatever it is they're going through is literally not going to be the end of the world. But it feels so overwhelming to them that they don't know. They can't see to tomorrow. And anyway, so it's heartbreaking to me. And like I said, I would love to grow the program and do more. to make sure our kids, you know, grow up into adulthood and get to do awesome stuff like podcasts.

SPEAKER_01: 13:50

Yeah. Very cool. It's like I just tell them all the time and I don't, you know, the little frontal lobes are quite, you know, understand the consequences of everything, but it's someone all the time, you know, don't make a permanent solution

SPEAKER_00: 14:02

for a temporary problem. Absolutely. Absolutely. It really is heartbreaking. You know, I went to the high school graduation this year and when they give away those posthumous high school degrees, like it is gut-wrenching to me. And I just, I want us to never lose another child, teenager otherwise to suicide.

SPEAKER_01: 14:24

Yeah. Let's talk a little bit about, like it's not just the suicide, but, you know, just the mental health of our youth in general and how that plays into what you guys see at the DA's office when it comes to You know, I'm sure that there are statistics out there. I didn't pull them up regarding, you know, children who are suffering from mental health or whose parents maybe suffer from mental health and like how that directly relates into, you know, maybe some juvenile delinquency and crime and not, you know, maybe trying to self-medicate and drug usage and like all kinds of different types of things. Talk to me a little bit about like...

SPEAKER_00: 15:00

And I don't know about statistics, but it's certainly not... out of the norm for SSC juveniles who are probably struggling with some mental health issues and they are self-medicating. They are really kind of rebelling against school, not coming to school. Maybe they're behind in their grades, which further feeds into how they're feeling about themselves. Self-harm, even if it's not to the extent of suicide, they have these dangerous behaviors that come into play. It is hard to reach those kids because, you know, like you mentioned, their brain is not complete. I mean, that is why we have juvenile court. That's why we have things like youthful offender status because it is well known and documented that their brains are not fully developed in order to handle a lot of the situations that they're in in modern day worlds. So, you know, one of the things that we've also put into our office is the Helping Families Initiative, which is whenever The DA's office is in the world of crime prevention versus crime enforcement. Most of that is going to run through our Helping Families Initiative. And that's not a program every DA has. Like I said, every DA gets to decide what's important to them. But when we're working these programs, it's going to come through Helping Families Initiative. And so the ladies that we have working in that program, if we get referrals about kids that may be struggling with this, that aren't in the juvenile justice system. The whole goal is to not get them in the system at all. We want to keep them out. We work with our mental health programs. We work with tutoring agencies. Anything that they may be struggling with, we have... you know, contacts in the community that can help those kids and the adults and the families kind of sort that stuff out and remove that stumbling block. And so, you know, get that out of the way, keep the path going, keep them moving forward. That's one of the great things about the DA's office is I've learned that Lee County is a very giving community. Absolutely. There's a lot of nonprofits, a lot of, it's an extremely charitable community, but a lot of times people don't know what one group is doing or they're what the resources is that another group may have. And so the DA's office is a huge platform. And usually when I write a letter from the DA's office, it gets a response. And so we have the ability to kind of bring all those charitable organizations together and really kind of be a center point and make those recommendations based on those contacts.

SPEAKER_01: 17:46

Absolutely. Well, that's great. I mean, it's really good that... that you guys have kind of picked up that torch first, like your mission statement, and that you have that ability to do that at the DA's office. So do you guys, because somebody wanted to get more involved in this specific, you know, Strike Out the Sigma or Helping Families initiative, like how would they potentially get involved with that, with either one of those? Is it something that you guys do a fundraiser for? Is it something that people can donate to, possibly

SPEAKER_00: 18:15

volunteer for? So because we are a government office, we're very limited in how we fund these type of events. For example, on Strike Out the Stigma, we have to do that through donation. So one year we got a grant. That was the first year we did it. We got a grant through mental health that helped pay for a large amount of that. And then the Opelika Kwanzaa Club also donated to pay for the pizza and the food. Because food is like a red flag when it comes to a state auditor. They're gonna... question it so yeah this year we didn't have the grant and so you know Eddie Smith and Mayor Fuller stepped up to the plate and sponsored the whole event and it's not exactly crazy expensive, at least the way we do it now. And so, you know, I could see it in years in the future where if people want to donate to, you know, our Strike Out the Stigma event, you know, that certainly would be welcome. And, you know, we would put that towards that specific event. We have a victim services fund that also is donation-based. We started that a few years ago as well. And that is going towards meeting victim needs. So, Let's say a victim has their house burned down by a person, not an accident. As a result of a criminal action of another, someone loses everything in a fire. We can use those funds to help replace their clothes and basic essentials and that sort of thing. And then with Helping Families Initiative, I think the biggest way people can help is just being involved. We have several events throughout the year. promoting those events, attending those events, talking about the things that we're doing. That really is like more than donations. That really is the best way to help facilitate the programs that we have at the DA's office. It's just participation and word of mouth and just letting us hear back from the community that these programs are making a difference, that they are welcome in our community. And, you know, I'll say that when it comes to the programs crime prevention part, the community involvement in our office is something that we've kind of really focused on. I have more people who come up to me and talk about those initiatives and programs than they talk about any case that we've tried. And that's been kind of strange. Like I said, it just sort of accidentally happened, our community involvement and kind of taking this path. But it has certainly been the most rewarding and the most community involvement we've had. One of the goals I've had as being DA is to educate the community about what their district attorney's office does. Because after 20 years, I find most people have no idea who their DA is or what their DA does. But I have found through all of our programs and initiatives that are outside of that, that are really community involvement, that's what I get asked about. When I see people out and about, that's the stuff that they want to know about, that they've heard about, that they... are really excited about. And it's kind of cool to see that, you know, they know about their DA's office, not because of the horrible things that we deal with, but because of the good that we're trying to put back in that community. And, you know, I'm on, and I kind of feel like being the DA's or like mom, like if you break the rules, there's consequences and I will enforce the consequences, but I don't want you to fail. And so I, We will address the consequences, but then when it's done, it's done. And we're going to move forward and try to do better the next time and set up structures for success. So that's how my mom was. So that's how I feel. So a lot of times I feel like I'm basically... Lee County mama, you know, like if you do something wrong, we're going to get in trouble. You know, I'm very disappointed in

SPEAKER_03: 22:06

you,

SPEAKER_00: 22:07

but then we're going to do better.

SPEAKER_01: 22:09

Right. Absolutely. That's a great segue into the next thing that you guys participate in, which I think is fantastic. Yeah. And that is going to be, I don't really know exactly what you guys refer to it as. Second chance hiring event or second chance job fair. Yeah. And so basically there's a whole check the box

SPEAKER_02: 22:29

thing.

SPEAKER_01: 22:30

Debate. I think about, you know, if you are a convicted felon and you're applying for a job, there's a whole, like, I wouldn't say debate. It's more of a, I don't know, it's a trend. It's an advocacy about people saying, like, let's remove that, check the box off applications because what happens is... A lot of times, you know, we're in a competitive job market, right? If you've made a mistake or whatever, and you go in and they're like, have you ever been convicted of a felony? And you mark yes. A lot of times the application will just be kind of thrown to the wayside. But you guys have done something pretty cool to where you partnered, I guess, with the Goodwill Career Center.

SPEAKER_00: 23:12

We did. We partnered with the Goodwill Career Center. The first year we did it, we did it completely on our own. And I guess let me just say what the second chance hiring event is or second chance job fair. We go back and forth. We want people to know it is a hiring event, like jobs are available, but job fair seems to be the term that most people are familiar with. But there were other DAs in the state that were doing something very similar and they were in larger areas. And I just thought, you know, Lee County is large enough to support an initiative like this, and it's just really important. And when I started trying to find businesses, like I was just looking for a list, like give me a list of all the local businesses that hire people with felonies on their record. I mean, I was like, there isn't one. I mean, I really thought like somebody knows, like here's a list, you know. And so we started out by just cold calling businesses and saying, hey, would you consider hiring someone that has a conviction on their record? And we just started making a directory, basically, of all the businesses that would say yes. And so we started the Second Chance Job Fair. And what I love about the Second Chance Job Fair is that everybody knows what they're walking into. the employers know that the people who are attending have criminal records. So there's no surprise. There's no shock. We're not catfishing anybody. And then all the job applicants also know that these people are hiring and that they know that you have a criminal record. So the expectations have all been met. Everybody's aware of who's coming in the door and who's going to be there. And so we get that uncomfortableness already off. Oh, basically almost like equals the playing field. It does. Right. Yeah. I mean, everybody's invited. You don't have to be, you know, conviction on your record. Um, but you know, it's been funny throughout the years, like who has participated. For instance, the ABC board comes and participate. Really? They do because misdemeanors, they don't really care if you have a misdemeanor. And so they come and they participate. Um, and yeah, I point that out, too, to say these are real jobs. Like, to me, we really don't change it to career rather than job because I think job has a bad connotation to it. Like, people are thinking, well, it's going to be really low pay, that kind of thing. And so we really strive to make sure that the jobs that we have participating are careers with really good wages, really good benefits. And then we also have resources that will come. So let's say you need a certificate on how to drive a skid steer, and that's going to help you get to where you're going. We have Southern Union there. Let's say it's child care. You can't work the shifts you need to work because you're struggling with child care. So we have the Child Care Resource Center come. So we try to think ahead of, okay, what's preventing people from getting good paying jobs? Let's put those resources here with them so that they can take advantage of that. And then let's bring the jobs in. And I'm telling you, some of these jobs, like the signing bonuses and what they make, I'm telling you what. Questioning the VA. Yeah. And these, you know, what I also love about this job is like, you know, let's say, for instance, all the hamburger patties that are made for McDonald's are made at Golden State Foods, which is here in Lee County. The little tubes that the mini M&Ms come in, made here in Lee County. The headsets during college football season, you know, the Coach Calm heads, they're made here in Lee County. So what's great about that is you've got someone who maybe doesn't have a pristine record. They've made mistakes, but they can then go to their children and say, I was a part of making that. And they can do better. And generational crime is a real thing. It's a huge problem. you know, good paying jobs and, and being proud of what we're doing, I think is the number one way to break generational crime. Absolutely. I think it's a huge,

SPEAKER_01: 27:32

I think every human needs a purpose and without a purpose, I think that a lot of them flail and don't have, you know, and kind of make some wrong choices and that kind of thing. Well, I think it's an excellent, an excellent program. And do you guys just do that like once a

SPEAKER_00: 27:50

year, a few times a year? We've experimented with doing it twice a year and then doing it once a year. We're kind of, we always try to look and see what's the most effective and we're always kind of playing with that. We've done the spring and we're going to be looking towards the fall. We really, to best help us with that program, we need employers. We need a lot of employers, but we also need job seekers, like not just the ones with with criminal records, but anybody who's looking for a better paying job can come and attend this program. If you do have a criminal record and you owe money to the courts, Opelika City has partnered with us on this. And of course, our county courts have partnered with us on this. They get$250 credit towards their court order of monies. So just by coming to the job fair, just by exploring your other options, you get$250 off of your court costs. That doesn't apply to restitution. I mean, if you steal somebody's lawnmower, you're going to have to pay for it. But there's court fees and stuff like that. you know, the stuff that keeps my lights on, we're going to give you a$250 discount for

SPEAKER_01: 28:55

the credit.

SPEAKER_00: 28:56

Yeah. It's a credit.

SPEAKER_01: 28:57

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 28:57

Nice.

SPEAKER_01: 28:58

That's actually really, that's, I mean, I thought that would be a really good initiative to go. So I would say that, um, I mean, so how many like employers do you guys have? Like, I think, I don't know, the last time I saw a flyer or something, you guys have posted on social or it's not a goodwill person or I posted it or it was, um, There's a lot. There was a lot of them that were on there. It

SPEAKER_00: 29:22

varies, but I would say anywhere between 15 to 20 is our average employer numbers. We do have some staffing businesses, but we really try to make sure that these are jobs that you can maintain regularly. Forever. Right. Not like a temporary tech. Yeah. I mean, I'm not saying they're not there because they are sometimes, but, you know, these are really places that you can retire from. You get a benefits package. And there's some companies in Lake County that are doing some incredible things. Like there's like a, like a defense, like armor making place. I mean, yeah. They will hire, they will come. There's some organization that does some sort of seal or metal fabrication on roofs. They hire and like, I mean, some great interesting stuff. Yeah, that is really neat. Listen, don't count out Waffle House. I'm telling you what, Waffle House, there's a reason why you have some of this, you see the same people at Waffle House and they've been there for 20 years. Because Waffle House knows how to treat their people. Absolutely.

SPEAKER_01: 30:35

I had a friend and she ended up moving, so she didn't end up working there anymore. But she got a job with Waffle House and just as a manager of one of them or whatever. And then very quickly, she was promoted. And she was 100% making six and a half figures. It was wild. And I remember being like, At Wal-Mart? Yes. They didn't have to have a college education. That's right. Just a high school or GED. It was wild. Yeah. How much she was making at Wal-Mart. I'm a huge fan of Wal-Mart too. I mean, I love Wal-Mart. Man, I tell ya. Wal-Mart has to see me at some good points and some not so great points. Same. And so it really is

SPEAKER_00: 31:22

going very loudly thinking about Wal-Mart right now.

SPEAKER_01: 31:26

coffee to bed, too. Honestly, it's all really good. It's all really good. So, talked a little bit about, you know, the connection between mental health support and crime prevention. We've got, you know, the DA's office has been able to basically create your own mission statement, which I think is really cool. And Mitchell's mission statement

SPEAKER_02: 31:48

and

SPEAKER_01: 31:48

just to be able to go out and really, like you said, balance between

SPEAKER_00: 31:54

And educate. I mean, it is a little scary when you realize that you have this big job that you've been entrusted with by the people that you live with, your community. And honestly, when you get to that spot of district attorney and you realize there's really nobody there to tell you how to do it, and you can kind of create... the office and whatever form you would like it to be, it's a little daunting and it's a little scary. And you're not sure how it's going to be received, number one, by the community, but the people within your office that you obviously want to make happy. Like I said, this has been really, really rewarding. And I can't think of any better way to run a DA's office than to have this focus on crime prevention, which includes education. you know, talking to civic groups and organizations and stuff like that. I mean, it really is like one of the favorite parts of my job. Yeah. Well, I'm sure the other parts are horrible. They weren't horrible, but that's how I love it too. So, you know, that's ultimately what brought me to the job in the first place, you know, is the enforcement part, which I do love. But yeah. How many cases do you guys have right now? Oh, it's in the thousands. I haven't done... Now, I will say the way we count it is criminal charges, not people, because each criminal charge requires its own paperwork, its own... Every charge has to be handy. So you can have a person with 15 charges. That's 15 charges that we have to handle. So, I mean, it's, it's, it's in the thousands.

SPEAKER_01: 33:32

Yeah. So I've heard that like you guys, not necessarily you guys, but I know like we're getting expansions in courts because the area here is growing so fast. Does that mean that you guys are going to be able to do some expansion and get some help to handle maybe your overload of cases?

SPEAKER_00: 33:46

Yeah. So we are getting a new circuit judge. I think that judge will take the bench in 2027, I believe. That's correct. And, you know, that's one of the things people will think about is our office has to staff that courtroom. I mean, they're DA staff, but we have to put the personnel in the courtroom to make sure that the courtroom runs. So we started trying to plan ahead for that about a year ago, a year and a half. Really went into the law school, got some new... lawyers, and we're really training them up with the idea that we've got to think ahead. So it remains to be seen what the impact is. We're also going to a public defender system versus a contract defense attorney system, which is something that's going to be brand new to Lee County. We're going to have a lot of changeover for that. That's going to be really, really different. And so the public defender's office will be basically the mirror image of a DA's office. So these are people that they're their only job is to be public defenders in Lake County. Whereas right now the defenders that you have, if you're, you know, indigent, you know, if you, if you can't afford an attorney, one will be appointed to you. Those folks is a contract basis. And, you know, so they do other things as well. You know, they, they take on private clients and stuff like that. So that's going to be a huge change. So I think, you know, we're going to see a lot of changes in the criminal justice system in Lake County. there'll be some growing pains, you know, to get that kind of get those changes implemented. And really, cause man, criminal justice really is a machine. I mean, it really is. It has all the kinks and all the clocks of any kind of machinery. And it takes a second when you want to, you know, totally reverse engines. It takes a minute to get things going again. Well,

SPEAKER_01: 35:35

that's actually pretty exciting to move forward. I think that, Once it smooths out, I think, you know, having a specific public defender's office, I think it's going to work a lot better for those who, you know, need help reporting and attorney and that kind of

SPEAKER_00: 35:48

thing. Yeah, I do too. I think because, you know, their attentions are not divided. And listen, we have incredible defense attorneys in Lee County as well. I know a lot of people think if it's the public defender or board appointed lawyer, it's somehow substandard. legal representation. And that is just not true in Lee County. I don't think so either. And so, but it is helpful to have somebody that that's their only job, you know, and, you know, they don't have to be in job in court in Chambers County or Russell County or, you know, wherever they're 100% in Lee County. I think The representation is going to be quality, as it always has been, but it's almost going to be more of a logistical change that will be better for the courts at all.

SPEAKER_01: 36:33

Will they

SPEAKER_00: 36:33

work at the courthouse? Are they elected? So the public defender is appointed by a board, and all of these people are state employees, so they're just like the DA's office or their state employees, except they're 100% funded, whereas the DA's office is not. But that's a podcast for another day. OK, I will skip that part, but I'm not bitter. But they are state employees, so we don't have the defenders not been named yet. So I think basically they're calling for resumes and applications for the public defender position. I think that deadline is June 30th. Once that individual is hired, then that person hires all of the assistant public defenders. So it is exactly like the VA's office, except they're not elected. They are hired. And then there's a board oversight. So they are accountable to a board, but they're not accountable to the electorate, which is a totally different thing. Pebble of fish. Yeah. And so they'll hire who they need and then they'll have their own office. They're not going to be in the Justice Center because there's just not the space. So whoever that public defender is is going to have to find a location in the business building and start from scratch. I mean, we're talking computers, printers, chairs, toilet paper, printer paper, ink pens. They're going to have to start from the ground and hold the whole thing up. Well, that'll be

SPEAKER_01: 38:00

quite the... endeavor oh yeah so if there's anybody out there listening who wants to you know kind of a project to get started and it's a lot of great

SPEAKER_00: 38:10

yeah exactly and i won't say that it is yeah check it out if you want to work with me on the other side of the aisle yeah that may be the biggest downturn really long it all sounded good until then

SPEAKER_01: 38:23

no i'm sure that it's not it's not bad it's not bad at all What are some of the, like, just, like, a couple of, like, the cases that, like, you're really proud of that, not just as a DA, but, I mean, you are, you were obviously assistant assistant for a while before that. Like, what are some of those cases that really kind of stand out of just being really proud of, like, those successes?

SPEAKER_00: 38:45

Yeah. Yeah. Sometimes the failures are, they stand out, too. Oh, yeah.

UNKNOWN: 38:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00: 38:51

You know, the ones that didn't work out the way we wanted to, but something positive came from it. Ava's Law is one of those examples. You know, the defendant in that case was actually charged with capital murder. And we knew that that was going to be a struggle to get that conviction. And the only other option was manslaughter, which is really way down on the charging scale. And it was when we saw that we knew there was something missing in the middle. That's how Ava's Law came about. Like there needed to be really to close that loophole between the two. And we didn't get the capital murder conviction, but we did get basically Ava's Law conviction before Ava's Law became the actual law. And really working with the legislature to actually get that into our code book I'm very proud of that. Like I said, I hate that we have to have it because it means a child has died. But what it means to me is that someone can get the appropriate punishment for what they did. Whereas before Ava's Law, that didn't exist. People were not getting the appropriate punishment for abusing a child to death, which is basically what that means. I feel like that's a big capital. Yeah, but it is the law. I'm with you. but if I can't get that, you can't get it. Absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. And so when I see the news that someone has been convicted of under AIDS law, it's technically called a felony murder, child abuse. You know, I'm very proud of that work that we did there. I'm proud of the work we did in, in Lorraine's case. I mean, I'm very proud of the cold case work that our office does. Yeah. I mean, I should have. I

SPEAKER_01: 40:43

know it's weird, but like, but the cold case only because. Yeah. I thoroughly enjoy. Yeah. these people who think they've got away with it. Oh, man, I tell you what. I love it. You know, and then they're like, well, look, yes, you are.

SPEAKER_00: 40:59

And I'm like, aha. Exactly. I mean, we want people to be sweating. Like, if you committed a crime in Lee County and you've gotten away with it for this long, I want you to be sweating and be like, I, that woman's crazy about cold cases. And, you know, and it's a personal thing for me. And I know you've had it, however, but most people know that my grandmother was murdered and it was an unsolved case. So cold cases to me are more than just something about not wanting somebody to get away with something. But it's almost like, well, my family didn't get the justice that we wanted, but I can help other people. It's a risky play. Yeah. to take on cold cases. I mean, because normally when they come to my desk, they, you know, if they could have been dealt with years ago, they would have been. And so they're already risky. Um, and whether it's good or bad, I think I'm a kind of a bigger risk taker than a lot of folks are when it comes to cold cases. So definitely, you know, it, our cold case work, I'm very proud of, very excited about, um, all of our local law enforcement agencies are totally bought in on cold case work. They have most all of, or they all do have people that are dedicated to kind of go back through those cases. And I can speak from the family's point of view that, you know, there comes a point when you, when you realize that your family is in this cold case category, you have the realization, my case will probably never get solved. You know, you, there's a point in time where that happens and you're like, okay, This is just how it is. We're never going to know who did it. But what you really want to know is that someone is still looking at the file. That's all you really want to know. That's right. And so that is one thing that I can assure everybody in Lee County that if they are a part of that, if you're part of the cold case family, then you can rest assured that that we are still always looking at those cases. We're always bringing back in. We're always looking and thinking about new ways and what can we do differently and who can we go back? Whose cage can we rattle again? Divorce is like the single biggest solver of cold cases. You know, once things go down the tubes and people slit the sheets, you know, it's like, Oh, let me tell you what they really did. Yeah. So, um, you know, sometimes you get these lucky breaks and things happen, but you know, you just have to take a chance on them. So, you know, looking back on a career, you know, isn't going to end anytime soon. I hope, you know, cold cases are going to be one of those things that I'll feel really good about. Yeah, absolutely. I think

SPEAKER_01: 43:36

that's great. I love a cool case. I mean, I hate that they are there. Yeah. I love, um, when they get, when they get solid, I think it's just so much. Well, it's just justice.

SPEAKER_00: 43:46

I mean, you know, you, what you, you know, what it means to say I love cool cases is, is you love justice. You love, you know, the consequence of someone's bad actions being brought to light. And, um, that's what's so good about it. Yeah, absolutely. I think it's great. Thank you so much for coming in. I really appreciate it. Yeah. Hey, I love talking about my job. Clearly, like, I don't know if somebody had to take this down. If there was a port port here, she'd be really mad at me. I'm like talking monster. That's why I

SPEAKER_01: 44:14

think a little about

SPEAKER_00: 44:15

this job.

SPEAKER_01: 44:15

I think it's great. You know that you're so passionate about your work and what you do. And I know it's hard

SPEAKER_00: 44:22

work. It is hard work. It is. It really is. But I do love it. And I get asked all the time, how do I sleep at night? And honestly, I sleep pretty good. I think that everybody has gifts. And I think, just like I couldn't be a teacher, I think that doing this job, anybody who does this job has to have certain gifts that were given to them. And that's how we're able to cope with it. But I do love it.

SPEAKER_01: 44:50

Well, I think you do great at it. We're super... We're very lucky here in Lee County to have you at the helm. Thank you for coming in. And we'll have to do some more. I'll have to have you back. We're going to get Mary Rosen to come back in. That'll be nice. And when Mary and I get together, we're like comedy hour. Yeah. That'd be great. And for our listeners, Mary Rosen is our circuit clerk. Yeah. And former prosecutor. Yes. So, yeah. I actually didn't know that until I think you were telling me about when you guys, or she, no, she was saying when y'all used to work together.

SPEAKER_00: 45:22

She did a whole screen door in evidence one time. And I just thought that was the most fantastic thing ever. Did you love it? a whole entire screen door and evidence. Like she marked it as exhibit, whatever. And you put that sucker in evidence. And what people don't know is like all the exhibits that you put in court, go to the jury for them to look at. And then the court reporter has to keep it. So there's a screen door with a bullet hole in it and floating around

SPEAKER_01: 45:48

and somebody's story. Somebody's story. Yeah, man. Yeah. That's good stuff. But thanks for coming in. Like I said, we'll have to get you back in and we can maybe talk about, um, We'll do a talk about this. Let's key case. Yeah, man. That would be cool. It's a crime favorite. I hate to say that, but it is. I'd love to hear that case. Well, thank you guys for listening. Tune in next time for our next podcast. And just keep remembering that no representation is made that the quality of legal services to be performed is greater than the quality of legal service to be performed by another lawyer. Have a good one. Bye. All right. See ya.

SPEAKER_03: 46:34

Don't start spying. We finish it.

SPEAKER_01: 46:38

Car accident, DUI, wrongful death? Contact the Walton Law Firm, 334-321-3000.