By Jimmy Hancock

jhancock@journalnet.com

    POCATELLO — With Bannock County Prosecutor Mark Hiedeman's decision to retire at the end of his current term after 20 years in office, the race to replace him has become a dogfight between Kent Reynolds and Steve Herzog. One touts his years of handling criminal cases and the other his lengthy experience as a prosecutor.

    Reynolds has been part of the Bannock County Public Defender's Office for the past 14 years, currently serving as its assistant chief deputy public defender. In all, he's spent nearly 17 years handling criminal defense cases of all types, including misdemeanors, felonies, child protection, and juvenile cases. He has also worked on the defense of murder and death penalty cases.

    As a private attorney prior to joining the public defender's office, Reynolds handled civil cases, including representing governmental entities, an important detail, he said, because the county prosecutor's office also represents the county in civil matters.

    “This is the type of experience that is needed to lead the prosecuting attorney's office,” Reynolds said. “I am certified by the Idaho Supreme Court to handle death penalty cases.”

    Herzog has spent the past 10 years as a deputy city prosecutor for Pocatello's city prosecutor's office. He has also been a member of Bannock County's misdemeanor domestic violence court since its inception roughly seven years ago and is co-chair of the Bannock County Domestic Violence and Sexual Assault Task Force, a multi-agency group that works to reduce domestic violence.

    His experience as a prosecutor as well as other community projects, Herzog said, has led to his developing quality relationships with local law enforcement. He also volunteers his time to help CASA, the court appointed special advocate, a judge appointed group that speaks on behalf of children in cases where their well being is of concern.

    “I am proud of the pro bono work I have done with several areas, including the Citizens Law Academy and CASA,” Herzog said.

    In fact, later this month Herzog will be awarded a Denise O'Donnell-Day 2012 Pro Bono Award by the Idaho State Bar. Prior to joining the Pocatello city attorney's office, Herzog was in private practice for eight years, during which he handled civil cases. While civil case law experience is something he knows will be beneficial as the Bannock County prosecutor, it's his experience over the past 10 years as a city prosecutor that Herzog tends to speak about most often.

    “I am the only candidate for prosecutor who is a prosecutor,” he said.

    But Reynolds contends that all criminal court experience is important when it comes to the job of county prosecutor and touts his experience, even though it was in criminal defense. He said the fact it involved felonies is important.

    Should he be elected, Reynolds says he will focus on several areas initially.

    “One of my primary concerns is the treatment of victims in criminal cases and the lack of coordination and responsiveness to victims,” he said. “Based on my experience, I believe there needs to be an increase in training and supervision of deputy prosecuting attorneys to more fully represent the victims of crime and hold defendants accountable for the crimes they commit.”

    Herzog believes the prosecutor's office has a good core of attorneys and administrative personnel, but says he knows there will be some things that will need his immediate attention, including the impending departure of at least one deputy prosecutor, Cleve Colson, who was elected prosecutor of Bingham County during the primary election in May.

    Vic Pearson is also running for prosecutor of Franklin County.

    “There are going to be some seats that need to be filled with new attorneys,” he said. “Of course, there is also the Michael Sparks trial, which I am going to get right to work on when elected. It's the first thing I will address.”

    Sparks is accused of murdering his estranged wife in the spring of 2011. Early this year, Sparks made it clear he will be taking his chances in front of jury. But that trial was postponed until March of 2013 to allow for full preparation of the case, including ample time for an outside investigator to do his work.

    One of the issues that has made the race for this office contentious at times is the concerns expressed by some, including Herzog, that should Reynolds be elected prosecutor in the same county where he has served as a public defender for so long, there would be a significant increase in cases the office could not handle because of conflict.

    Chief among those is the Sparks case, for which Reynolds was part of the defense team early on.

    But Herzog also questions Reynolds ability to switch gears so dramatically, going from one side of the courtroom the other.

    “You develop a mindset of prosecuting when you do it for so many years,” Herzog said. “That's why people work their way up in a prosecutor's office. You don't just go from 14 years of criminal defense to prosecuting.”

    But Reynolds says there are a number of reasons the conflicts won't be significant and at least one is his ability to move from one side to the other.

    “The organization of the prosecutor's office typically resolves almost all conflicts any prosecutor in that office may have,” Reynolds said. “The ethical rules and laws of the State of Idaho outline a procedure for resolving all conflicts without any additional cost to the county.”

    In the case of Sparks, Reynolds said, it's the Idaho Attorney General's Office he will ask to step in, something he said that office is required to do in certain circumstances and without cost to the county prosecutor's office.

    When it comes to moving from defending criminals to prosecuting them it's pretty simple. Reynolds said an attorney is bound to do the very best job he can for his client, and as prosecutor his client would be the people of Bannock County, not the criminal.

    Herzog said no movement will be necessary if he’s elected and he has a proven track record as a prosecutor.