Election 2024: District Attorney candidate Q&A with Christopher Parosa, James Cleavenger
The primary for Lane County elections is on May 21 and two candidates have filed to replace Lane County District Attorney Patty Perlow, who chose to retire from office after 34 years of working in Eugene.
The two candidates running are Christopher Parosa, Chief Deputy District Attorney in Lane County, and James Cleavenger, who currently works as the Oakridge City Administrator and a reserve Oakridge police officer who previously challenged Perlow for the DA job in 2020.
In an interview with The Register-Guard in Dec. 2023, Perlow said she hopes that Lane County residents vote for an individual who understands the role of a district attorney within the criminal justice system.
"I would hope that people in Lane County would want a district attorney who knows what a district attorney is supposed to do and how that role fits into the criminal justice system," Perlow said.
The City Club of Eugene is scheduled to host a candidate forum for the race on Friday from noon to 1:15 p.m. at Carlita's Restaurant in the Gordon Hotel at 555 Oak Street in Eugene. Parosa is scheduled to attend and will be discussing his campaign and community-wide criminal justice issues and challenges facing the DA's Office, according to organizers. Cleavenger did not respond to invitations to participate, the organizers said.
The Register-Guard asked each of the candidates a series of questions and asked them for biographical information. Here are the candidate's answers, word for word:
Biographical Information
Christopher Parosa
My family and I live in the Sheldon District of Eugene, Oregon. I have been the Chief Deputy District Attorney for the Lane County District Attorney's Office since November of 2021. A prosecutor since 2004, I have served as a Felony Trial Team Supervisor, a Major Crimes Team member, felony level Deputy District Attorney, Adjunct Instructor for the University of Oregon School of Law, a member of the Uniform Trial Court Rules Committee, a member of the Lane County Sexual Assault Task Force, and a member of the Josephine County Domestic Violence Counsel. I currently serve on the Board of Directors for Kids First Child Advocacy Center. I also spent many years volunteering as a youth football coach.
James Cleavenger
Current Oakridge City Administrator hired by the unanimous decision of the Oakridge City Council in 2022. License attorney in Oregon and Washington. Oakridge Police Officer (full-time 2017-2022, Reserve officer 2022-present). Former Reserve Police Officer in Junction City from 2010-2013 and in Coburg from 2013-2017. Board of Directors of the Oakridge-Westfir Chamber of Commerce. Oregon State Fire Marshal's Rural Fire Protection Review Taskforce member. Oregon Association of Chiefs of Police Executive Leadership Institute graduate. Former member of the State of Oregon's Police Policy committee. 2019 Oregon Peace Officers Association Medal of Honor winner for single-handedly disarming a suspect who murdered both of her parents with a knife and was in the process of attempting to murder an elderly neighbor with the same knife. Special assistant to Cook County Assessor Jim Houlihan in Chicago 2001-2004. Motorcade driver for Al Gore (2000) and Barack Obama (2008). Juris Doctorate from the University of Oregon School of Law 2008. LLM in International Human Rights Law from the University of Liverpool, England 2005. Former Judicial Law Clerk for U.S. District Court Judge Michael McShane in Eugene 2013-2017. BA in Political Science and International Studies at DePaul University in Chicago. Also studied at Harvard, Oxford (England), and the University of Sheffield (England).
Questions
Why did you decide to run for Lane County District Attorney?
Cleavenger: I decided to run because nobody else would. We live in a democracy and voters should have a choice, not be spoon-fed a candidate preordained by their predecessor and the powers that be. 78% of District Attorney races in Oregon are uncontested. This needs to stop. I am also running to give rural Lane County residents a voice. I have lived and worked in Oakridge, Junction City, Pleasant Hill, and Coburg.
Parosa: With public announcement of District Attorney Perlow's retirement, the prosecutors of Lane County asked me to run to become the next District Attorney of Lane County based on my nearly 20 years of experience, strong relationship with community partners, temperament and desire to enact reasonable criminal justice reform measures. As a career prosecutor, I believe the criminal justice system can be used to promote safety, accountability and compassion. This is for the bet—terment of the community, victims of crime and the criminally accused and their family. I strongly support alternatives to incarceration programs for the drug addicted and mentally ill.
What are the biggest challenges facing Lane County residents, and how would you address those challenges if elected?
Parosa: With the recent legislative reform of Ballot Measure 110, the Criminal Justice System once again has a role in addressing drug addiction at its earliest stages — before lives are destroyed, brain chemistry is permanently altered, and criminal behavior escalates to affect others. Our success will be determined by the ability to implement deflection and diversionary programs to address addiction. It will require strong relationships and collaboration between community partners to create successful, local treatment-based programs. I have the strong relationships and a personal commitment to see these programs work for our drug addicted community.
Cleavenger: Homelessness — From my experience working as a police officer since 2010, I have witnessed this issue grow and plague our community. I have also had my own home in Eugene burglarized twice in the past three years, and have lost track of how many times my car has been broken into since I moved to Eugene in 2005. Oregon ranks #3 in the nation for the highest percentage of unhoused people, which is totally unacceptable. The best way to decrease the number of unhoused people in the community is to provide them a place to live so they are no longer homeless. I am very supportive of Project turnkey, a statewide initiative that provides funding to turn vacant or abandoned hotels or other blighted commercial properties into transitional or permanent housing. I also support increased mental health and addiction treatment services, in order to reduce recidivism and homelessness.
What does public safety accountability and transparency mean to you?
Cleavenger: It means citizens should have input and oversight of the DA's office. It means investigations of officer-involved shootings should be conducted by law enforcement agencies and a DA's office outside Lane County. It means answering public records requests and providing demographic and geographic data on prosecution rates to ensure fairness.
Parosa: An essential aspect of public faith in the Criminal Justice System is the belief that police and prosecutors make the right decisions for the right reasons. because criminal investigations are — by rules and prudence — shrouded in secrecy, members of the public question the fairness of the decisions being made. As District Attorney, I will do everything in my power to remove the veil of secrecy by releasing investigative records, creating a public dashboard to track cases and decisions, and speak directly to the community and victims about the decisions being made and the reasons for those decisions to enhance transparency.
If elected, what are our top three priorities for the District Attorney's Office?
Christopher Parosa said:
To increase transparency in decision making to restore and enhance public trust.
To advocate for increased staffing. With larger time demands due to the ubiquitous nature of surveillance video and increased responsibilities imposed by the legislature and appellate courts, we simply cannot process the more than 5,000 cases referred by law enforcement each year with only 24 attorneys (one less than we had in the mid-1980s).
To advocate that legislative leaders create civil alternatives to criminal prosecution of mentally ill citizens, such as liberating the standards for civil commitments and to create assisted outpatient treatment programs.
James Cleavenger said:
Increase funding for mental health and drug addiction treatment services, which has shown to reduce the rate of repeat-offenses and homelessness.
Increase transparency at the DA's office by collecting and then releasing demographic data related to prosecutions. We can't properly address the problems and inequities without the data to identify them.
Increase public involvement and oversight of the DA's Office by creating a Citizens Advisory Committee that meets monthly to give input on policy decisions directly to the District Attorney. Many police departments do this and the DA's office should too.
What experience/perspective do you think you would bring to the District Attorney's Office that is different from other candidates?
Cleavenger: Everything would be different because I would be the first Lane County DA who was not hand-picked by their predecessor and therefore truly independent and not beholden to any special interests or the political establishment. My experiences working as city administrator, attorney, and police officer, give me a unique and broad perspective. Being a Lane County resident since 2005 also provides me with the historical knowledge necessary to understand the dynamics of local government.
Parosa: As a prosecutor for almost 20 years and supervising manager for five, I have prosecuted almost every type of crime, including murders, sexual assault, child sexual abuse, robberies and elder abuse. I have deep understanding of not only adult criminal prosecution, but of juvenile prosecution, child support enforcement and death investigations. I been intimately involved in managing the Office's nearly $11 million dollar budget. I know, understand and have the esteem of my colleagues, court, defense bar, law enforcement and community partners in Parole and Probation, behavioral health and the County Commissioners Office. My opponent has no such experience.
Haleigh Kochanski is a breaking news and public safety reporter for The Register-Guard. You may reach her at HKochanski@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Register-Guard: District Attorney candidates Cleavenger, Parosa on the issues
