Veteran prosecutor hoping to become DA

CHUCK SCHULTZ, NEWS-PRESS STAFF WRITER

March 2, 2006 1:49 AM

Flanked by supporters in the Santa Barbara County Courthouse archway as she proclaimed herself the best and most experienced person for the job, Assistant District Attorney Christie Stanley announced her candidacy Wednesday for district attorney.

If she's elected in June -- or wins by default because no one else runs -- the veteran prosecutor would become the first female district attorney in Santa Barbara County, and one of the few women in that post statewide.

She would replace her boss, District Attorney Tom Sneddon, who's had that job for 23 years but decided in 2003 to step down when his current term expires at the end of this year.

Ms. Stanley, 57, supervises the District Attorney's Office branches in Santa Maria and Lompoc.

Last month, Mr. Sneddon endorsed her bid to replace him, adding to her broad support by fellow prosecutors, law enforcement agencies and several local politicians.

Whether she will face any competition on the June 6 ballot remains to be seen. With the filing deadline still about two weeks away, no one has yet submitted candidacy papers. Ms. Stanley said she plans to file hers next week.

Solvang defense attorney Gary Dunlap, who has a lawsuit alleging malicious prosecution pending against the District Attorney's Office, also picked up candidacy papers last week and paid a $1,210, nonrefundable filing fee, but has yet to return those forms, election officials said. He could not be reached for comment Wednesday, but he told the News-Press twice last year that he did not plan to run.

"She's probably unbeatable," he said of Ms. Stanley in December, "but it will be an absolute shame if she runs unopposed."

An assistant district attorney since 1991, Ms. Stanley informally launched her candidacy in May 2003. Before being chosen by Mr. Sneddon as one of his two assistants, she was a deputy district attorney for 11 years, in both the Lompoc and Santa Maria offices. After graduating magna cum laude from Ventura College of Law, she was a civil attorney for two years before becoming a prosecutor.

"I've been a Santa Barbara County prosecutor for the last 25 years and have handled or supervised every job in this office," she told reporters Wednesday. At her second news conference of the day -- the other was in Santa Maria -- she read a prepared statement and then answered questions from a portable lectern set up beneath the Courthouse arch, on a sun-draped afternoon with the Sunken Garden and mountains above Santa Barbara as a backdrop.

"I personally have successfully prosecuted every type of serious crime, including robbery, rape, child molestation, arson and murder," she added. "I have developed a very strong working relationship with our law enforcement partners in this county."

Two representatives of the Santa Barbara County Deputy Sheriffs' Association were among the phalanx of supporters standing behind her as she spoke.

While promising to "vigorously prosecute all offenders," Ms. Stanley said she also understands "the need for proactive, preventative programs in certain cases."

Ms. Stanley was one of the original committee members who helped forge a successful drug court, for example, and supports a countywide truancy program designed to prevent juvenile crime by keeping teens in school.

Asked how she thinks the District Attorney's Office is perceived in the community after the failed prosecution of pop star Michael Jackson, she replied:

"For the most part, I think we have an outstanding reputation for ethics and integrity beyond reproach. Sometimes it's a difficult task, but we do the right thing. Our goal is justice and we're not always going to win every fight, but we're certainly going to give it everything we have."

Ms. Stanley appeared confident she will prevail if a challenger surfaces.

"I'm going to run on my qualifications and my ability to run this office," she declared. "I think they are superior to anyone who's even suggested they might want to run."

Mr. Sneddon has been Santa Barbara County's district attorney since January 1983 and ran unopposed every time except for his first election in June 1982.

http://www.newspress.com/Top/Article/artic...692847660499073

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