Bob Spence is endorsed for Kane County State’s Attorney over Jamie Mosser because his vision for the office is more pragmatic.
We appreciate that Mosser created the Domestic Violence Diversion Program, which requires that abusers must admit responsibility for their behavior, and has some good ideas for reorganizing the office.
But Spence has two decades of experience as an assistant state’s attorney and assistant attorney general. He has tried 17 homicide cases and served as a judge for 18 years in Kane County.
Spence has more experience in other ways as well, having served as an Illinois Appellate Judge for seven years and serving on the Supreme Court Committee on Equality and Fairness and on the Supreme Court Legislative Committee.
While both Mosser and Spence support having the office focus on violent crime, we like that Spence’s focus will be on prosecuting illegal gun cases. We agree with him that this would affect community violence more than other short-term measures.
We also like Spence’s proposal to create a Family Justice Center, a strategy tried elsewhere to make it easier for domestic violence survivors to receive services all in one place instead of having to go to other areas for counseling, housing assistance, advocacy and so on.
Spence proposes more supervision in the office, more training on legal issues and trial technique, expanding victim services and continued support of the specialty courts.
We also like Spence’s idea of using a social worker or counselor not just for victims but for the state’s attorney’s staff – and for giving them time off to see the counselor. It recognizes that the job is stressful and that prosecutors may need this extra level of support.
Spence is endorsed.