CHICAGO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Saying her candidacy gives voters a rare chance to “renounce corruption, cover-ups and passing the buck,” former federal and state prosecutor Donna More today kicked off her campaign to become the next Cook County State’s Attorney before a large gathering of supporters at a downtown hotel.
More said that her campaign is the beginning of a journey to heal a fractured community. “Today we put everyone on notice that we are ready to elect a State’s Attorney who isn’t afraid to do what’s right. It’s a choice that voters rarely get: to tell power brokers we are fed up with politics as usual and that we want to replace it with professionalism and integrity.”
Surrounded by former prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, business people, teachers, parents, students and families of victims of violent crime, More vowed to “never ... ever ... let uniforms, politics, race or money triumph over justice.”
“This election is all about trust and who has the competence and courage to earn it from the residents of Cook County,” she said. “I have a plan for restoring faith in the State’s Attorney’s Office that rests on three pillars: reforming the office so we follow the evidence no matter where it takes us, reducing gun violence, and rooting out public corruption.”
More proceeded to outline specific actions for dealing with police-involved shootings, getting courts focused on illegal gun trafficking and transfers, and doubling down on Cook County’s system of doing business with “winks and nods, contracts with kickbacks, jobs here for political favors there.
“I’ll be the public’s watchdog: a former federal prosecutor and experienced trial lawyer who isn’t a politician, who believes evidence – not influence – is the bedrock of our criminal justice system, and who will take the lead in the fight against crime,” she asserted.
“Our community has been rocked to its social and moral core by chants of ‘400 days’ and ‘16 shots,’” she continued. “If we had a State’s Attorney with the courage to act promptly on the video evidence of Laquan McDonald’s death, we’d be at trial today, not in the streets. We could have avoided a $5.0 million cover-up decision, and we wouldn’t need any federal investigations.
“If I am elected State’s Attorney, we’ll install programs that deal specifically and expertly with police involved shootings – senior felony prosecutors dedicated to police incidents, evidence in real time, prompt action and transparent reporting, and an end to municipal control of evidence.”
