Potter criticizes opponent in announcing his candidacy
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?This is a critical election for district attorney as there are serious differences between experience, backgrounds, and obligations that separate me from my opponent,? Potter said. ?Examine my experience and record as district attorney and then examine my opponent?s experience. Drug dealers, those with criminal charges, and others associated with criminal activity are actively campaigning for my opponent. They want someone who will be easy on them. I will not be obligated to drug dealers, gamblers, defense lawyers or others who want to control the district attorney?s office.?
Potter said it is important to be evenhanded as district attorney.
?The office of district attorney is not for sale. I work for the citizens of this district and not a select few.? Potter said. ?My campaign spending will be limited and be reasonable. I will not spend $5,000 to hire outside consultants to tell me how to sell myself to you during a campaign or try and buy the office. You get the real me.?
Potter noted he also works outside the courtroom to help make strong cases.
?The district attorney must prepare cases that will withstand scrutiny on appeal after conviction. This takes serious criminal law experience,? Potter said. ?My opponent has been an attorney for five years. Only a small percentage of time has been defending criminal cases and less time trying criminal jury trials.?
?My opponent has no experience in working crime scenes, writing search warrants, or working with law enforcement,? Potter continued. ?This is not a profession you learn on the job. I have that experience.?
Potter noted you cannot play favorites and be an effective district attorney.
?The hardest part of being district attorney is having individuals tell you they believe in law and order then get upset when you refuse to give them, their relatives or their friends a break when they are charged with a crime.? Potter said. ?What they want is justice to apply one way for them and another way for everyone else. It takes a tough district attorney to stand up to those who run gambling houses opened to the public, crack houses or those who sell drugs on the street corners. Being tough on gambling and illegal drugs is not popular with certain individuals in our community, but my job is to enforce the laws and I have.?
Potter pointed to accomplishments during his administration.
?The greatest satisfaction of being district attorney comes from being the voice for those who have no one to stand up for them such as the Fletcher Andersons of this world who died without any family or friends to say someone mistreated them,? Potter said. ?Satisfaction comes from prosecuting those who have abused children for years or having individuals that have broken their meth addiction tell me that putting them in jail saved their life though they hated me when they went to jail.?
Potter says he has kept his campaign promises of eight years ago.
?In 1998, my commitment was that I would be a tough district attorney. I have maintained that commitment,? Potter said. ?I have prosecuted tough homicide cases, child sex abuse cases, and more drug cases than anyone could have imagined in 1998. The jails in Warren and Van Buren County are full with individuals who have been convicted. We have prosecuted DUIs as DUIs. The individual with nothing is treated the same as the individual who drives a Mercedes.?
Potter noted there are no unsolved murders remaining which have happened on his watch, adding his office has tried more jury trials than any previous DA here. Potter also said he has brought current technology into the courtroom.
?I was the first district attorney to bring computer and digital technology into the courtroom in Warren or Van Buren counties with the use of PowerPoint, Trial Director, digital photographs, and audio and video equipment that allows everyone to see photographs used in a trial and listen to any recordings,? Potter said. ?We have encouraged the use of video interviews of defendants when possible. My opponent does not use any computer or digital technology in the court room.?
Potter noted age does not matter when serious crime is involved.
?In 1998, I promised to transfer juveniles to be tried as adults who needed to be treated as adults,? Potter said. ?We have transferred more juveniles to adult court than have ever been before in this area. Juveniles who commit violent crimes, or have serious juvenile records, must be treated as adults.?
Potter added he has not left out his native Van Buren County.
?We have spent more hours working in Van Buren County than any previous district attorney,? Potter said. ?A lot of this work has been late at night and on weekends. We are always available for law enforcement in Van Buren. My opponent has promised that she will locate an office in Van Buren County. The state will only fund one office for the 31st District. It is not practical to have the office in Van Buren County when over 90 percent of our cases are in Warren County.?
Potter noted child support has also been enforced during his term.
?We collected $2.2 million in child support our first year in office,? Potter said. ?That amount has climbed each year. Last year we collected $3.8 million in child support. No one has ever collected more child support than we have in this district.?
Potter noted he is accessible to the public.
?Many of you know where I live and have stopped by to talk to me or have called me at home. My home number has always been listed in the telephone book. My opponent does not list her home telephone number or her home address.?
Potter has two daughters, Cory, a manager for Charter Communications, and Sarah, a 2005 honors graduate of Roger L. Williams School of Law and an attorney working for the trial judges in Providence, R.I. He has a son, John, who lives with him and will be a freshman at the high school this fall.
Potter is a veteran of the United States Air Force and a member of American Legion Post 173. He is a graduate of MTSU and the University of Tennessee, College of Law. He has been licensed to practice law since 1987, most of his practice being criminal law. He is a member of the American Bar Association and the National Association of District Attorneys.
Potter said he is the right choice for district attorney.
?There is a huge difference in experience in what I offer as district attorney and what my opponent offers,? Potter said. ?My obligations are to enforce the laws of this state and continue to make Warren and Van Buren counties a safer community for their citizens. We have made tremendous progress in prosecuting criminal defendants and collecting child support, but in doing so we have made enemies who do not want a tough district attorney. We do not need to go backwards. I need your help, support, and vote on Aug. 3.?