For the first time in 20 years, Allegheny County District Attorney Stephen A. Zappala Jr. is facing an opponent in a Democratic primary.
His challenger, political newcomer Turahn Jenkins, claims the prosecutor’s office has failed to evolve during Mr. Zappala’s tenure.
Mr. Jenkins says the office, with 227 employees and a nearly $20 million budget, needs to more proactively address widespread problems in the criminal justice system such as racial disparity, over-incarceration and an uneven cash bail system.
Mr. Zappala, 61, of Fox Chapel, who is running for the sixth time, stands on his record of creating special courts meant to reduce incarceration, improving the treatment of crime victims and increasing accountability for law enforcement officers since he took the office in 1999.
Mr. Jenkins, 41, of Churchill, who most recently served as the chief deputy public defender for Allegheny County, announced his candidacy in July. The election is May 21.
Off to what appeared to be a strong start, Mr. Jenkins stumbled quickly when, at a meeting with area LGBTQ community members, he said that being gay or transgender is a sin.
Social activists called for him to drop out of the race.
He did not. Last week Mr. Jenkins said that he has spent a lot of time over the last 10 months reflecting on what he said and trying to learn and grow from it.
“It was obviously a very difficult time for the campaign,” Mr. Jenkins said. “I’ve tried to mend some fences.”
He has met with members of the LGBTQ community and tried to learn more about the issues that affect them.
One member, Maria Montano, who participated in that first meeting in a conference call, recently decided she will support Mr. Jenkins in the DA race after his campaign reached out to her.
He also earned the recommendation last month of the Pittsburgh Democratic Socialists of America.
He has shown “he's willing to learn about parts of life he doesn't know about,” Ms. Montano said. “He'll take time to understand the harm that he can cause. That's what I saw when I met with him.”
Mr. Jenkins said that, as district attorney, his job would be to “dispense justice through the U.S. Constitution and the Pennsylvania Constitution, and not the holy Bible.”
No one, he said. would be “denied justice based on how they look, who they love, the color of their skin, the tradition of their faith or where they live. I believe in justice for all without exceptions.”
The Rosfeld trial
Just after the June 19 shooting death of Antwon Rose II in East Pittsburgh, Mr. Jenkins decided he was making the right decision to quit his job at the public defender’s office and run for district attorney.
At the time, he questioned why the suburban white police officer who shot the black, unarmed teen and was charged with homicide was given bail — without objection from the DA’s office.
“He was treated differently because he’s a police officer,” Mr. Jenkins said of Michael Rosfeld, who was acquitted. “What kind of message does that send to the community?”
During the trial in March, he questioned why the prosecution did not call an expert witness to address the issue of use of force.
“It didn’t seem like they put forth enough effort,” Mr. Jenkins said. “I don’t think those charges would have been filed except for the angry voices of the community expressing their frustration.”
But Mr. Zappala disagrees.
“I get it. We didn’t get the result we wanted,” he said.
But he defended how his prosecutors handled the case, noting that between the two trial attorneys, they’d handled more than 200 homicide cases.
Mr. Zappala said the prosecution team went to three different use-of-force experts prior to trial, and in each case, were rebuffed. At some point, he said, they needed to move forward to prepare for trial.
Still, Mr. Zappala said, “we felt confident we were going to blow up the expert on the other side.
“I don’t agree with the result. You saw what happened. If you’re OK with shooting an unarmed person in the back...” he said, his voice trailing off.
Fundamental disagreement
The candidates seem to have a fundamental disagreement about the functions of the district attorney’s office.
During his campaign, Mr. Jenkins has talked extensively about racial disparity, reducing the jail population, trying to shrink the number of people in Allegheny County on probation and changing the cash bail system.
“The problems that are plaguing the criminal justice system didn’t just happen last year,” Mr. Jenkins said. “We all want the same thing — we want to be safe, and we want people to be held accountable.”
To do that, he continued, the DA’s focus should be on dangerous and violent criminals.
“The office no longer has compassion for people,” Mr. Jenkins said. “It seems justice is reserved for a certain few rather than everyone.”
He noted that about 13% of Allegheny County’s population is black; the population at the Allegheny County Jail is on average 60% black.
But Mr. Zappala — who has been endorsed by the Allegheny County Labor Council, Allegheny County Democratic Committee and the Steel City Stonewall Democrats — wonders if his opponent understands the role, and limitations, of the prosecution.
“Crime has a direct correlation to poverty,” Mr. Zappala said. “I’m not in charge of transportation, safe and decent housing, or education. I’m on the back end of government.
“I think our entire government needs to look at our successes and failures because the criminal justice system can’t fix this — not by ourselves.”
Both men talk about the value of diversionary programs in the criminal justice system, but they identify the concept of diversion differently.
Mr. Zappala and his office helped to create a number of specialty courts — including for DUI, drugs, mental health, veterans, domestic violence and sex offenders — as well as Accelerated Rehabilitative Disposition programs and “Phoenix Court.” All are designed to help defendants with different needs navigate the system more efficiently and have the smallest possible impact on their lives.
He said that 7,000 cases per year go through the Phoenix docket, which allows nonviolent defendants to receive a much faster disposition on their case than is typical; and another 4,000 people each year get ARD for DUI charges, which allows a defendant’s record to be cleared after probation is completed.
“I’m very proud we’ve been able to do that and sustain that for so many years,” he said.
But Mr. Jenkins thinks that true diversion means capturing people earlier in the process.
“Once they’re in the criminal justice system, the damage is already done. It’s a lifetime conviction, whether it’s a misdemeanor or felony.”
Once people are arrested — even for a nonviolent crime — they risk losing their jobs and housing if they are held in jail for any period of time, Mr. Jenkins said.
“It’s a waste of time. It’s a waste of resources,” he said.
A debate over debates
In recent weeks, both candidates have been invited to two different debate forums, including one sponsored by among others, 1Hood Media and the American Civil Liberties Union. Mr. Jenkins went to both. Mr. Zappala went to neither.
"The DA should be able to have this discussion with the people of Allegheny County," said Terrell Thomas, a senior field organizer for the ACLU of Pennsylvania. “The people want to hear the DA and how he feels about the issues that exist right now.”
But Mr. Zappala said that he speaks to community groups regularly in his role as district attorney.
When asked why didn’t attend the candidate forums, he said, "I'm done with socialists and ACLU forums. I don't agree with their philosophy on a lot of things."
Mr. Zappala said that his campaign has sent the ACLU information — and he's posted it on his campaign website — about his priorities in office, what he's accomplished and his positions on the issues identified by them as important. Still, he said, those groups want to focus more on political issues.
"I'm not interested in talking politics with the ACLU or socialists," Mr. Zappala said, adding that he felt "sandbagged" by them a couple times. "It's a circular type of thing, and I don't think it's productive at this point."
He said he would be happy to debate Mr. Jenkins in a "legitimate forum," such as one offered by a mainstream media organization or a group such as the League of Women Voters.
Mr. Zappala noted that the ACLU put out a statement last year opposing a victims' bill of rights.
"We have a very fundamental disagreement as to what the office of the district attorney is supposed to be.
"Socialists focus on the rights of the accused. There's no consideration for victims' rights. They don't consider public safety. They don't consider input from the police.
"I'm not running for public defender. I represent the people of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania."
Staff writer Christopher Huffaker contributed. Paula Reed Ward: pward@post-gazette.com, 412-263-2620 or on Twitter: @PaulaReedWard.
First Published: May 12, 2019, 12:00 p.m.
