PORT TOWNSEND — The two candidates running in the Nov. 2 general election for Jefferson County prosecuting attorney discussed the law and how it applies to youths during an informal forum at the Boiler Room on Wednesday.

“I think there is a disproportionate amount of young people in the system,” said Port Townsend attorney Paul Richmond, who faces Deputy Criminal Prosecutor Scott Rosekrans on the November ballot.

“One of the reasons that I got into this race is to correct that situation and reach out to youth.”

Both Richmond and Rosekrans seek to replace Juelie Dalzell, who is retiring after three terms.

Richmond, who has made youth justice a focus of his campaign, approached the Boiler Room board with the hope that he could address those who frequented the youth-oriented center, staff member Marla Overman said.

Overman liked the idea of Richmond speaking at the facility but suggested that Rosekrans attend as well.

Rosekrans — who has worked in Jefferson County for two years after working as a policeman, county prosecutor and defense attorney in Texas — emphasized his 35 years in law enforcement, and spent much of his time explaining how the system works.

“Criminal justice hasn’t changed a whole lot in 35 years, other than the fact that technology has given us better tools for law enforcement,” Rosekrans said.

“There are still what I call the ‘quality of life’ criminals, those who have been in the system several times and do not want to be rehabilitated.

“We need to give them every chance to straighten out. If they do not, we need to punish them fully for their crimes.”

Richmond, who has lived in Port Townsend for three years and on the Olympic Peninsula for 20 years, has been an attorney since 2001, working mostly as a defense lawyer.

He said that it was hard for young people to remove themselves from the system once they had been arrested for minor violations or had been accused of crimes.

Rosekrans said he was willing to be lenient in those cases, but did not categorize that group as career criminals.

“There is a core group of repeat offenders who have been in and out of the system for as long as 19 years,” he said.

“They refuse to change and they need to be held accountable.”

Richmond said: “I think that everyone has at one point in their lives committed a felony.”

“Whether it is speeding or opening somebody’s mail, these felonies can be pretty minor and shouldn’t ruin people’s lives,” he said.

When pressed, Richmond said that he had committed such crimes, although inadvertently.

Rosekrans said he had never committed a felony, and the worst thing he had ever done was skinny-dipping in an upstate New York rock quarry as a teenager.

Richmond has criticized the prosecuting attorney for trying some cases that he said should not got to court.

“Trying these cases has a tremendous impact on the budget,” he said.

“It not only costs the prosecutor’s time but the jail, public defender and other social services.”

Said Rosekrans: “I am the prosecutor and I have no choice as to which laws I can enforce.”

“If I don’t like the law, I still must prosecute the offense.”

Rosekrans said there are exceptions, such as when a person with a clean record is caught with a small amount of drugs and agrees to enter a treatment program.

“If they behave themselves and stay clean for a while then we can show some leniency,” he said.

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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.