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Colin,
Thank you for your questions. Here's my best effort to respond to them given the legal and privacy constraints involved.
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Members of our office have a first amendment right to support and endorse any candidate, and, while there have been differing opinions among members of our office regarding which candidate to support, I have every confidence that the men and women who serve in our office are career professionals who remain committed to representing the citizens of our County with distinction. As far as I know, our County has not experienced this type of contested election in the District Attorney’s office in a long while, and this will inevitably result in people taking sides, but that is each individual's right. I believe our highly talented staff will rise above the campaign and the completed election process.
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To help ensure such an outcome, I've reached out to other District Attorneys to gather successful approaches to post-campaign related issues. At the conclusion of my term in January 2015, I believe that our office will have established a smooth transition for the newly elected District Attorney.
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I have endorsed Assistant District Attorney Tim Covello and I stand firmly behind that endorsement. There are members of our office who disagree with my endorsement, and, as I said, that is their right. It has not affected the ability of our office to continue to effectively investigate and prosecute our cases, though.
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The matter was reviewed further with County Counsel in April because I learned new information regarding the dates and amounts of donations. With regard to the case of People v. James Bing and decisions made as to Deputy District Attorney Dan Dow’s work assignments, I am unable to provide additional details as there may or may not be personnel related issues involved. Given that personnel matters are confidential, and in consultation with County Counsel, I have already shared what I am legally permitted to share at this point, and this information has already been
published by the local media. I can't express an opinion about those facts or provide any other details that might infringe on any employee privacy rights. ! !
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As I told some of the Deputy District Attorneys in our office, the facts regarding our office’s handling of the Bing case have previously been detailed in the media. The candidates’ opinions regarding those facts are not something on which I should, or will, comment. In particular, the citizens of our County will ultimately determine the weight to be given to the various opinions regarding facts advocated during the campaign. !
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I did not ask or request former Riverside County District Attorney Grover Trask to endorse Mr. Covello.