Metropolitan News-Enterprise

 

Thursday, January 6, 2011

 

Page 1

 

Jackie Lacey Says She Will Explore District Attorney’s Race

 

By KENNETH OFGANG, Staff Writer

 

Assistant District Attorney Jacquelyn “Jackie” Lacy said yesterday she has begun an exploratory committee for a possible race to succeed District Attorney Steve Cooley.

Lacey, the No. 3 official in the office, said she was “seriously involved in this race and planning for the future,” but would not formally announce as a candidate until she has had the opportunity to talk to potential supporters.

She has, however, appointed a campaign treasurer and begun soliciting funds, she said.

Two other candidates, Deputy District Attorneys Alan Jackson and Danette Meyers, are already in the race, with the primary election scheculed for June of next year. Jackson announced his candidacy last month and said he has already raised more than $100,000, while Meyers announced her candidacy in a press release just before the start of the year. 

Cooley, after losing his bid for state attorney general in November, said he would not rule out the possibility of running for a fourth term, but would step aside if a “qualified person” who was a career prosecutor stepped forward.

Lacey has been close to Cooley since she worked under him when he was head deputy in the San Fernando Valley. But she declined to comment on whether he would step aside,  or would endorse her candidacy if he did, saying “my boss speaks for himself.”

Her plan right now, she said, “is to get out...and meet as many people as I can.” While she would not give a timeline, she said that “at the right time and the right place...I will announce my candidacy.”

 Lacey said she has not hired a campaign manager or consultant yet. She acknowledged that the race will be difficult, calling Jackson and Meyers “distinguished litigators.”

The campaign will emphasize her career accomplishments and status as part of the office leadership, she told the MetNews. She has been a prosecutor for 24 years and part of the central management for the past 10 years.

Her assignments over the years before entering management included line prosecutor assignments downtown and in Newhall, code enforcement, and Career Criminal and Hate Crimes units, where she handled the county’s first race-based hate crime murder case, she noted.

She was honored by a legal publication as one of the state’s Top Women Litigators, received an award from Mothers Against Drunk Driving, and was twice recognized by her fellow prosecutors as Deputy District Attorney of the Month.

 

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