Dear Editor,

I have been reading with interest, amusement and sheer frustration the accusations that Attorney Susan Happ is unqualified to be our next District Attorney because she has worked as a defense attorney. I rebut those who think that defense work automatically disqualifies someone from working in areas of the court system which deal with enforcement and prosecution. I would remind them that our current Branch IV judge, Randy Koschnick, was not only a long time public defender, but the head of that very office here in Jefferson County. He is now possibly exploring the option of seeking a spot on the Wisconsin Supreme Court; because he was a skilled defense attorney, will you say he’s not qualified to run for the state’s highest court? I doubt those same people who down Attorney Happ for her work would say that Judge Koschnick is not qualified to be in his position because he once vigorously and conscientiously defended a large number of criminals. Attorney Happ is the most qualified to prosecute because of, not in spite of, her defense experience. Who better to develop and frame a case than one who has the experience to take that same case apart? Attorney Happ will be best able to build the stronger case because she can readily anticipate defense strategy because she has inside working knowledge.

There may be some who object to a woman being head DA, assuming that a she won’t be up to the job. Nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, another one of our sitting judges, Judge Jacqueline Erwin Branch III, was the former head district attorney. No one who was ever prosecuted by her or has sat in her courtroom would come away with any doubt that a woman is more than up to the job of being a tough prosecutor and a strong leader.

Some years ago I worked at Human Services as a case manager, a job which required a great deal of time at the courthouse and in the company of attorneys and other court personnel. I had an insiders’ view of how the process works and the type of maturity, both personal and professional, as well as the type of experience that made various attorneys effective or ineffective. I believe that someone who is newly minted without very much experience in the legal field is poorly qualified to head up our District Attorney’s office. I am sure that Attorney Happ’s opponent is reputable and, in time and with more years of experience, will likely be a solid attorney. However as a taxpayer in this county, I believe that when someone takes on that title and that level of responsibility, it should be someone who is well out of the period of their professional life when they are still cutting their teeth. They should have a great deal more professional miles on their odometer. Paying top dollar and handing over such a level of responsibility to someone who is rather untried seems to me to be a poor use of public money and an unwise (as well as unsafe) move.

It is not which side of the courtroom one practices from that makes the greater difference, it is the number of years and variety of cases with which one has been professionally involved that determines readiness and capability to lead. While I respect that our current DA, Dave Wambach, has endorsed his subordinate for this position, he really could do no less given that they share the same party affiliation and they work together in the same office. Rather than have a knee-jerk reaction to only voting for Republicans because you may think that they are the only ones who care about law enforcement and public safety (they aren’t), please consider maturity and experience, along with dedication to and familiarity with this community, as weightier factors. Attorney Happ has a long history in Jefferson County with many family and friends living here; I have no doubt she will work even harder than someone without those kinds of ties since “the public” have names and faces to her. Safety in our county and rigorous prosecution are too important to be driven only by political labels.

Attorney Susan Happ really is the best person for the job of Jefferson County District Attorney at this time.

Kathleen O’Neill