I listened to what was a scheduled debate between candidates for Montgomery County District Attorney. One candidate was not able to attend. The interview is now available online at the program's website and I encourage interested voters to listen for themselves. I took rough notes, provided below. They are not intended as a full transcript. As always, I apologize in advance for any errors or misconceptions. Please visit the candidates' websites or contact the campaigns for further information.
A few personal comments are provided at the end.
Scheduled debate between candidates for Montgomery County
District Attorney
Bruce Castor, Republican, had to cancel due to a family
medical emergency
Kevin Steele, Democrat, had the entire hour to himself
Darryl Berger, interviewer
Opening Statement
KS: God, country, family come first. I hope everything is okay with Castor. I’ve been with Montco DA office for over 20
years, currently first Assistant DA.
Husband, father, coach kids sports, vp of local fire dept, president of
Penn State alumni association right now.
Running because it is important to have a DA who will serve victims,
stand up for victims, proud of the fact that we’ve been able to take politics
out of the office, work with 146 people who come to work every day to do the
right thing.
Q: Penn state
question. James Franklin stay or go?
KS: hope he stays.
Q: Bill Cosby. What is your take, you put out a commercial
on this
KS: The commercial
outlines some of the differences between me and my opponent, talks about my
record in the office and his record in the office. Something people should be thinking about
when they vote. Former DA failure to
prosecute when he had the opportunity.
Talks about some of the comments that have been made. Something voters should look at.
Q: Is it an open
case?
KS: can’t get into
that, but that doesn’t prevent others from getting into that, victim’s attorney
has made some comments and she is free to do that.
Q: what was available
when this was filed originally? Were
there other statements or only rumors?
KS: if you look at
Castor’s own press release back then he said he reviewed statements from others
who had made accusations, other victims got things from Castor’s own file, also
did a commercial saying he didn’t have other victims and I should have done
something about it. That commercial has
been taken down. In his own release he
talked about other statements he had reviewed, other victims mentioned back in
2005. In terms of I should have done something.
That’s an interesting and tricky statement. I’m not currently the DA. I can’t speak about past or ongoing
cases. Maybe that’s something he should have
thought about before he went on tv and talked about the victim. Others can talk about it. Victim’s attorney has been talking about
it.
Q; Decision not to prosecute
made in office by a group including current DA?
KS: Castor was the DA. He released a statement saying he decided not
to prosecute. Now we’re in a place where
he’s trying to conceal what he did in that case by throwing a victim under the
bus. He has said things about this lady
in the national media. When you’re
publicly dishonest about people you face ramifications. I understand he is now in a civil lawsuit
over statements he made about not prosecuting.
Q: Did that compel
Cosby to testify in civil case?
KS: again revisionist
history. He’s taking claim for a
settlement made in a civil case. That’s
not a role for a prosecutor to take credit for, getting a paycheck for a
victim. He’s indicated that he had a
role in this somehow because he got involved in giving Cosby immunity. Let’s break that down. If you give someone immunity, that’s on
behalf of the plaintiff in the civil suit.
Mentions an interview Castor did with Harry Hairston. Victim's attorney said she had never met him. Then to say that’s something he was party
to. Not only did he go to the press
about declining prosecution, he didn’t go to the victim before he made that
announcement. It’s all revisionist
history.
Q: Castor said he
sent a notification to attorney and they didn’t get it because of a faulty fax
machine.
KS: Maybe if you have
contact with people and not send things out on a fax machine. You have to talk with victims.
Q: Castor’s lack of sensitivity. What is role of DA in terms of relating to
victims and families?
KS: in the DA’s office
we have a special role as ministers of justice.
We represent the victims, the community, the police. There are things are in place in PA that
represent our obligation to victims.
That’s part of what we have to do in working with victims. We work with a number of agencies to make
sure victims are taken care of.
Q: you worked with
Castor, what do you think of him as a DA
KS: Turn to where we
are now. Back when he was DA he did a
fine job but things change over time.
You said in an earlier interview that he doesn’t need science and to say
that now is irresponsible. At a crime
scene now we work with science and technology to do what’s right and take that
before a jury.. I’ve been on the cutting
edge of that. I’ve worked on best
practices committees. We’re a model
because of things we’re doing now.
Q: You are the lead
prosecutor in case involving Kathleen Kane.
What can you say about the case?
KS: Not a whole lot. I am the prosecutor assigned to this case,
with partner in Bucks County Michelle Henry (first ADA in Bucks). We have a hearing coming up. We’re proceeding with that case on Nov. 10th.
Q: Why the decision to
bring in Michelle Henry, former DA now first assistant DA in Bucks?
KS: when talking with
others about cases involving statewide issues.
We have a great partner working with me to bring justice. Not unusual.
I’ve gone to other places and worked with other prosecutors. I took vacation and went out to Adams County
and prosecuted a case with someone there.
That’s what we do, work together.
Q: Castor indicated he would shift gears and you would be
the lead prosecutor on the case.
KS: I’ve heard the comments
made about reviewing the case. I don’t
think that’s an opportunity that he’s going to have. I saw his comment about basically putting the
Bucks Co office to the curb. When I got
over the arrogance of a statement like that, this is an important case that
people have worked hard on over a period of time. To say you’re doing to change gears
mid-stream is naïve to the extent we are involved with.
Q: Was there a political
conversation about making you the lead case given the context of the race
KS: There’s no politics
in prosecuting. There’s no politics in
the office now, or over the last 8 years.
That isn’t something we look at.
We look at doing the right thing.
Q: You are suggesting
politics played a role under Castor’s term as DA
KS: He’s testified
federally about doing politics in the office.
That was in existence during his administration. Last time he won the role as DA a month later
he was running for another office.
That’s a pattern of politics being there. I started in office over 20 years ago. I have not wavered in that. Worked my way up, now second in command. Not a politician. Maybe I’ve been naïve to some of this
process. I’m doing this because I want
to make a difference in people’s lives.
Q; You used to be a
Republican, when did you change registration?
KS: My change in registration
doesn’t look at a change in my views.
I’ve always been fiscally conservative, socially progressive, looked at
what is around me, local politics around me.
Gotten to work closely with county commissioners Josh Shapiro and Val Arkoosh,
seen what they’ve been able to do and what they’ve bene able to do in Montgomery
County. Like others in Montco looking at
where we are and who represents us in the right way. If the Republican Party is one of Castor and
Trump I don’t want to belong. Change not
based on wish to run.
Q: Changes made
internally after review of how decisions being made, some of that in the wake
of charges of Bob Kerns, GOP head. What
have those changes been and what has effect been?
KS: That also
illustrates in important comparison on how you deal with mistakes. This was based on a mistake in the reading of
a lab report. We embraced that and made
changes in how we did things. We
embraced the victim first and did everything we could to make sure justice was
done. We handed that case off and it was
successfully prosecuted by another agency.
We’ve won an award based on this.
We’ve put in checks and balances on how we handle things. Embrace mistakes and change things. Go back to
Cosby. Castor filed to prosecute case,
given a chance to change things, won’t apologize, now he’s part of a defamation
case. Make things right. That’s what we did. His arrogance leads him to not
apologize. You have to apologize.
Q: You were on a heroin task force
KS: This is one of
our epidemics. Most significant issues
that we have moving forward. I’ve been
on the forefront. There is a heroin
epidemic in Montco. Usually a pattern
where someone is involved with prescription drugs and then moves to
heroin. The task force looks at ways to
deal with those issues. Narcotics
Prevention Education, go to schools and talk to kids, I talk with them police talks
with them, then a mother or sister talks about what happens when they go down
that track. How we’re getting these
prescription drug boxes so people can safely dispose of prescription meds so
they don’t’ get into kids’ hands. Quick
story. One of our undercover detectives
was making a buy for cocaine, the dealer wanted to sell him heroine. He said he didn’t have a market. Dealer pointed to nearby school and said give
it away there and you’ll have a market.
We are focusing on this issue and making a difference. Another issue is dealing with addicts. Having narcan in police cars and first responders’
cars. Using drug dealers’ money to put
this in all the cars in montco. I’m very
behind treatment courts, one of which is drug court. It’s hard.
You have to be in there a lot.
It’s making a difference.
Recidivism numbers going down.
There’s a lot of work to be done.
I’m in the best place to take this forward. I was captain of our narcotics unit, trained
statewide.
Q: state forfeiture
law, change?
KS: We’re talking
about people involved in dealing drugs.
Part of the forfeiture law, funds confiscated, done in a conservative
way in Montco, make sure it’s the right thing being done. If we have this money we don’t need to use
taxpayer money for overtime or training or equipment or programs we have out
there. Narcotics Overdose training,
reached over 16K kids, paid for by forfeiture money. Amount per year varies, not a budgetary item,
depending on investigation. We hear
people don’t want to come to Montco to do crimes.
Q: role of
technology, social media, csi, etc. how
does that change what prosecutors do?
KS: Quick example, in
Pottstown, they were afraid to have their children sleep by windows because of
gunfire going on, 16 or 17 shootings between warring gangs, people wouldn’t
cooperate. We used wiretaps and were
able to get in and understand organization structure, using technology to stop
crime. There was one man a gang was
lining up to kill twice and we were able to stop that. We have to make the good people feel safe and
they are coming out now. Last Friday I
was at Hilltown Hightop (?) High School on a vacation day to help clean up the
community. That’s helping the
community. We do appreciate criminals to
be stupid enough to post things on social media. There’s investigative uses, and rules, in
everything and prosecutors sworn to follow the Constitution. We have a lot of hoops we have to jump
through.
Q: how would you use
office as bully pulpit?
KS: I think I’m doing
it now and hope my history is clear to people.
Narcotics Overdose Prevention – I’m in the schools and trying to make a
different to them. Tell them how much I
care about them and how I hope they do great things. We
have an obligation to protect the public.
We’re out there trying to make a difference. That’s why we do a lot of education. As issues arise it’s the mission of a
prosecutor to be out on the forefront and make a difference.
Q: Norristown
KS: working with law
enforcement community there. Rate has actually
gone down. Have a 100% solve rate from
2013 forward in homicide, nationwide about 64%.
We are doing extraordinary things in those types of cases. We’re making a difference there.
Closing Statement
KS: I’m running for DA
to make a difference in people’s lives.
Hope they will join in and backing me for this position, like law
enforcement has. They know Castor and me
well. All of the FOP throughout Montco,
the four that we have, are backing me.
21 DAs across the state have endorsed me. I did not go and become a defense
attorney. Stayed in this office to help
victims and work with people, to find justice in these cases. Have a history of taking most egregious
cases.
DB: Thanks Wayne Sharp for hosting. Sorry both candidates can’t be here. Scheduled well in advance so thought it best
to continue. We wish Castor well as he
deals with a family issue. I can only
remember one other time when we only had one candidate. Not unprecedented but unusual.
Personal comments
Darryl Berger is a fantastic interviewer and is able to interject a follow up question or comment so effortlessly that it is hard to record when he spoke if it wasn't the start of a formal question. Thus he actually had more to say than is recorded.
I've heard Bruce Castor several times over the years at debates and interviews. In my personal opinion he has always been a bit of a publicity hound. He seems to like the limelight. Again, that's a personal view.
I've met Kevin Steele once, at a multi-candidate event. I thought he was very sharp, very nice, and a little intimidating. He had reminded me in some ways of people I know who have been police officers for years, keen-eyed and observant, slightly clipped speech, always aware of their surroundings. Of course that was just one meeting.
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