Welcome – A letter from Leslie Hansen
The District Attorney is a public servant whose duty is to the citizens of the 18th Judicial District, which is comprised of Arapahoe, Douglas, Elbert and Lincoln Counties. The District Attorney prosecutes the criminal cases that occur in those counties. As a law enforcement agency, my number one objective is to have an impact on the crime rate. I will do that in three ways.
- Aggressively prosecute habitual criminals
- Support evidence- based courts that enhance public safety
- Impact legislation and state policy
First, I will aggressively prosecute career criminals and violent offenders. I will use the habitual criminal statutes to target those people who repeatedly victimize law abiding citizens and I will focus the efforts of the office on violent criminals who are a risk in the community. Removing career criminals and violent offenders from society makes our communities safer and contributes to a lower crime rate. Deterrence does work. Crime is down precisely because prisons are full.
Second, I will enhance public safety through the use of evidence- based courts like Drug Court and Mental Health Court. These problem solving courts also help to lower the crime rate by targeting non-violent offenders with mental illness and addiction problems. People who participate must take responsibility for their criminal conduct and take responsibly for their treatment. Often a stable living environment and consistent medication provides the support necessary for people to get out of the criminal lifestyle and become productive members of society. These courts work – they save taxpayer money and successful participants are less likely to commit a crime in the future and that has an impact on the crime rate.
Third, as the elected District Attorney, I will work to impact legislation that affects the criminal justice system. You cannot have a positive effect on the crime rate by being soft on crime, by decriminalizing behavior and by lessening sentence ranges for habitual offenders and violent criminals. I will collaborate with other District Attorneys to advance legislation that promotes community safety and I will defend against attacks by the criminal defense bar on the death penalty and habitual sentencing statutes. I will work to get appointed to the Colorado Commission on Criminal & Juvenile Justice and will actively participate in other state-wide projects that concern criminal justice.
A Fresh Perspective
The good news is that crime is decreasing in Colorado and in the 18thJudicial District. The District Attorney’s Office contributes to the decreasing crime rate by prosecuting those people who are responsible for the majority of crime. Statistics show that a relatively small number of people commit an overwhelmingly large percentage of the crime. Concentrating our efforts on career criminals with aggressive prosecution using the legislative resources available to prosecutors, i.e. habitual criminal statutes, allows us to target those individuals who are repeatedly victimizing citizens. Since habitual criminal statutes were enacted, mandating longer prison sentences for career criminals, the crime rate has declined. This of course makes our communities safer and decreases the number of people who are victimized. Crime rates are down because prisons are full. That is indisputable. Deterrence does work. Someone who has demonstrated that they will commit felony after felony will not be able to do so while in prison.
