Tuesday, April 24, 2018
District Attorney candidates Spencer Merriweather, the incumbent, and challenger Toussaint Romain, share their thoughts on how that office should be operated.
Last year, Spencer Merriweatherbecame Mecklenburg County's first African-American District Attorney. Merriweather, a Democrat, was appointedto fill out the remaining term of former DA, Republican Andrew Murray.
Merriweather will face a challenger in the Democratic Primary for the DA's seat. Former public defender Toussaint Romain, who made a name for himself during the Keith Scott protests by placing himself between demonstrators and police, is running against Merriweather for the DA's office.
Romain has said he's challenging Merriweather because he sees "a lack of transparency within the DA decision making" and wants to "hold [the] system accountable." Merriweather, when he was sworn in last fall, said skepticism of "the criminal justice system… is good." "We need to be taking a fresh look at what we're doing," he said.
Early voting has begun for the North Carolina primary election on May 8th. Before voters decide, we hear from the candidates for the county's highest law enforcement offices. We start with the candidates for District Attorney on Tuesday and on Wednesday, we meet the three candidates for Mecklenburg County Sheriff.
Guests
Spencer Merriweather, Mecklenburg County District Attorney (Merriweather's campaign page)
Toussaint Romain, former Mecklenburg County assistant public defender (Romain's campaign page)
