Stafford, Va. –– Jason Pelt announced his bid to be Stafford County’s next Commonwealth Attorney on Tuesday.
A defense attorney in his own private practice in Stafford, Pelt says the office he wants to lead currently spends too much money see’s little return on its effort.
“The Commonwealth Attorney’s office is horribly inefficient, wasting tax dollars while doing nothing to combat crime or promote justice,” said Pelt. “In our sister county, Spotsylvania, there is a less than one-percent difference in the crime rate between that county and Stafford, but Stafford County spends $1.2 million more than Spotsylvania does in their Commonwealth Attorney’s office.”
Pelt, a republican currently running unopposed, says he is seeking the nomination of the party.
He acknowledged outgoing Commonwealth Attorney Daniel Chichester who held the job for 40 years.
“I’m not running against him, so you’ll hear me say nothing negative about him, but changes do need to occur, and there needs to be an end to the mentality to where ‘we need to spend more money to combat crime because we can’t put a price on justice.’ The price of justice should be less than $3 million per year [Stafford is] spending,” said Pelt.
Pelt also said lines of communication between the Commonwealth Attorney’s office, the sheriff’s department and clerk of the court can be improved –– something he’s learned during his time on the job, he said.
Pelt accepted an officer’s commission in the Marine Corps in 1998 and served as both a defense attorney and a federal prosecutor in the JAG Corps until 2005. He is now a Marine Reservist.
Chichester last month suggested Eric Olsen, a deputy commonwealth’s attorney in Stafford County, would make a good replacement for him.
Olsen lives in Fredericksburg and would have to relocate to Stafford County to be able to run and be elected to the position.
