Party affiliation: Democrat

Current position: I am a litigation attorney, including criminal law. I have a private law practice in Lewiston.

Years in practice: 35 in Lewiston.

Education: Edward Little High School; Boston College (undergraduate) and University of Maine School of Law.

Personal information (hobbies, etc.): I have served on my local school board for 12 years. I have served as the Poland town moderator for 15 years. I am the former chairman of the Lewiston Planning Board. I was a youth sports coach for 25 years. Formerly on the board at New Beginnings in Lewiston. I am an avid runner having run hundreds of races and competed in several triathlons over 20 years.

Family status: Father of two. Grandfather of two. I have lived in Androscoggin County most of my life. I reside in Poland with my long-term significant other, Shanna, who is a local small business owner.

What would be your top priority as district attorney if elected?

1. New ways to break the cycle of domestic violence with intervention programs. Rates of domestic violence cases are unchanged in my 35 years in practice. Giving survivors a unified message that the abuser is at fault. 2. Getting all offenders into real substance use treatment earlier. Many clients have 10-20 convictions when they come to me. Almost all have addictions. The revolving door of jail is very expensive. 3. Taking the taxpayer into account when making policy decisions. New $125 million jails are not the taxpayers’ responsibility. 4. Bail reform: Minor offenders sitting in jail at huge taxpayer expense.

Would you support dismissing all nonviolent misdemeanor charges against defendants in Androscoggin, Franklin and Oxford counties in order to reduce the backlog of criminal cases docketed in those counties? Why/why not?

I support an immediate review of these cases and would work to resolve them quickly. Some can be dismissed. Some can be easily resolved by plea. This is not difficult to achieve. This backlog costs taxpayers millions of dollars across the state. The DA must be mindful of the taxpayer.

If not, what measures would you support to bring down the caseloads?

People sit in jail long past any sentence they would have received if the courts were not clogged. Time-served sentences in these cases is the responsible taxpayer thing to do. Offering defendants reasonable pleas at their initial appearance will slash the backlog. No more felony indictments for minor nonviolent offenses.

Would you support as district attorney not seeking cash bail for defendants charged with nonviolent misdemeanor crimes, and why?

I support this. Taxpayers waste millions on this problem. People can be getting treatment and doing community service. People don’t fail to show up for court concerned about losing $100 bail. They don’t show up because of severe substance use and mental health issues. Fix that and we have less victims and save millions.

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Neil McLean, candidate for district attorney