Mayoral candidate must answer for 20-year-old criminal charges

Allegations of criminal charges start a flurry of activity. As police investigate the allegations, witnesses are questioned, warrants are obtained and evidence is collected. Then, prosecutors start preparing a case against the accused. They determine and apply legal theories to the evidence gathered. Even with misdemeanor crimes, the case against the person accused is taken seriously.

Those accused must take the criminal charges as seriously as the police and prosecutors take their jobs. As soon as people become aware that they are under investigation, have been arrested or have been charged with a crime, those people need to start to prepare their criminal defense. In the case of misdemeanor charges, people may not feel that they are important enough to take seriously. However, even these seemingly minor charges can have serious long-term consequences.

Take Portland mayoral candidate Jefferson Smith for example. In 1993, Smith was arrested and charged with misdemeanor assault. He apparently got into some sort of altercation with a woman while he was a student at the University of Oregon. During this fight, he apparently hit the woman.

Now, nearly 20 years after the incident, Smith has had to apologize for his actions. The police report from the incident has been released to the public. Furthermore, Smith has had to answer questions about the incident at a press conference and has had to address the issue on Facebook. It is possible that this previous assault charge will deter voters from voting for him. Also, this could distract voters from more pressing issues in the campaign.

While not everyone accused of a misdemeanor will end up running for mayor someday, it is likely that those accused will eventually have to address the charges. By preparing a strong criminal defense, those accused of misdemeanors can give themselves the best chance at a positive outcome in a difficult situation.

Source: The Oregonian, "Portland mayoral candidate Jefferson Smith apologizes for poor handling of 1993 assault incident," Oct. 12, 2012