DISTRICT ATTORNEY'S RACE GIVING VOTERS A CHOICE

But Challenger Stix Is Unlikely To Break Blanchard's Hold On Office

Nearly every Saturday since early summer, when he learned he would
have a challenger in the Nov. 2 election, Dane County District
Attorney Brian Blanchard has put in an appearance at the Farmer's
Market. He hands out flyers and pumps hands, now and then getting into
it with passersby who "want to talk about Audrey Seiler or marijuana
policy."

The office of district attorney is by design political and partisan.
The job, however, is about the law, with all of its complexities,
obligations and constraints. "I do listen to people," says Blanchard,
referring to these contacts and those he gets at work. But he doesn't
make decisions based on "poll-testing or popularity."

Blanchard, 45, has in his two terms as DA shown himself to be tough
when necessary (pressing criminal charges against top legislative
leaders, for instance) and compassionate when appropriate. He declined
to prosecute a woman whose infant died after being mistakenly left in
her car, despite an outpouring of "harsh" sentiment from members of
the public. His major initiatives since 2002, when he beat back a
strong challenge by former GOP Sheriff Rick Raemisch, have cut the
number of cases his office prosecutes as crimes.

Now pot possession of less than 25 grams (up from seven), operating a
vehicle after revocation for reasons other than drunk driving, and
retail theft under $25 are all treated as ordinance violations,
punishable by fines. Blanchard has also expanded eligibility for the
county's drug court, which lets first-time offenders avoid a criminal
record, and launched a program to probe racial disparity in the
juvenile justice system.

But challenger Sally Stix, 54, a local attorney who's running under
the Green Party banner, thinks Blanchard has gone too far in reducing
his office's caseload in one area and not far enough in others. She
rips Blanchard's decision to no longer routinely prosecute employers
who stiff their workers (see "Blanchard hit on wage claims," 8/13/04).
Blanchard says his office lacks the resources, but may go after the
most egregious offenders.

And Stix, in her campaign lit, decries "a criminal prosecution system
that is unfair and discriminates against the poor and minorities" and
laments "the number of people who are incarcerated due to
poverty-related crimes." She blasts Blanchard for promising not to
prosecute people for medicinal use of marijuana and then, in a case
reported in Isthmus (see "'This is my medicine,'" 4/25/03) doing just
that. If elected, she would cease prosecuting all drug and
paraphernalia possession cases.

As a third-party candidate opposing a well-established incumbent, Stix
knows she has little chance of winning. But she wants to give voters a
choice, saying, "I think our democracy dies without it." Her role is
to raise issues that would otherwise not be raised.

Blanchard, asked if any of Stix's positions have prompted him to
reconsider his own, shakes his head no. But the issues she's raising
and the initiatives he cites are not all that different. Both are
about the DA's office being more merciful.