It was an appropriate start to the Midwest Crime Stoppers Training Conference Monday, as Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt was invited to speak for the second year.
Schimdt’s goal speech was to inform Crimestoppers of what his office has been working on in Topeka from his past 22 months as attorney general. He said his main goals are to be a “good partner” with local law enforcement agencies and to add value to existing public safety programs throughout the state.
“We are looking for ways to renew and add fresh aspects to current programs,” Schmidt said.
Schmidt said his office deals with criminal cases in small- to medium-sized counties, due mainly to the fact that the larger counties have sufficient criminal prosecutors in place. It is important to balance work between the office and visiting various counties across the state.
Through his jurisdiction, Schmidt said he has been working on four different aspects of criminal prosecution that he saw as under-supplied in the state.
First, criminal litigation has been a priority and he has worked to assist in court processes in smaller counties. The majority of criminal litigation throughout the state is focused on homicide cases and their prosecution. Schmidt said his office has strived to make these cases more of a focus, with efforts to make the process more efficient and speedy.
Second, he said the attorney general’s office is taking violent sex crimes against children very seriously and is putting those cases as top priority.
“We have pursued these cases with extra vigor,” Schmidt said. “Our prosecutors refuse to accept anything less.”
Third, Schmidt said his focus has been directed toward large-scale drug crimes, particularly those involved in the manufacture of meth. He said while meth is not the only focus, it is his top priority due to its high rates in Kansas.
Fourth, the attorney general’s duties include that of public misconduct cases and he is devoted to improve prosecution efforts by the state.
“Public misconduct cases are always unpleasant cases,” Schmidt said. “It’s our job to deal with them.”
In addition to his four goals, Schmidt said his office has made several additions and improvements to the state prosecution and investigation process.
For example, he said in the past the state had only employed one digital device analyst. Due to the increase of technology, both the prosecutors and the criminals have produced more complex tools — which create the need for more advanced investigation. Schmidt said the state is coordinating a new transitional digital forensic lab, which will be the first of its kind in the country.
“We will be increasing the technology and our number of digital analysts will increase from one to nine,” Schmidt said.
Schmidt reiterated his opening statements by saying he wants to spend his office’s $21 million budget responsibly. He said he “wants to be partners” with county law enforcement — reinforcing and supporting local programs, without replicating processes already in place.
The Crime Stoppers conference started on Sunday and will run through Tuesday afternoon.
Attorney general speaks to crime stoppers
