KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Jackson County will have a new prosecutor after Election Day. It will also be a historic election because, for the first time, voters will elect a black woman.

Two candidates, Melesa Johnson and Tracey Chappell, have experience in law and public safety. One of them will replace Jean Peters-Baker, Jackson County prosecutor for 12 years.

Peters-Baker decided not to run for re-election and did not endorse either candidate.

Meet Tracey Chappell

Alyssa Jackson/KSHB

Tracey Chappell, the Republican candidate, began her career making history.

Chappell co-founded an all-female law firm and became Blue Springs’ first female chief prosecutor.

“I am currently in private practice doing a lot of criminal defense work in Clay County, Platte County and Cass County,” he said.

Chappell said she is ready to get to work if voters elect her as their prosecutor. Your first stop is police departments.

“In my first 30 days, I will meet with all the police chiefs to tell them that we are open for business. When they bring cases to my office and they are serious crimes, even if they are missing certain information, it is my job. “To teach my prosecutors to talk to that detective on the phone,” she said.

In Chappell’s view, there are many avenues out of incarceration. However, repeat offenders won’t get much grace from your office.

She said, “Let me tell you… make no mistake… if you are a repeat offender, you are telling me that you didn’t get my second chance, that you didn’t get my warning. When you don’t understand my warning, it’s like my children: if you don’t “You got it the first time, let me help you so you always remember what I told you.”

Making history for Chappell means honing her team of prosecutors who will work alongside her and laying the foundation for solutions in every ZIP code.

“When I talk about community prosecution, I mean having a satellite office with our prosecutors in those police jurisdictions. It won’t be every day. It will be certain days that we will be in those divisions. When we do that, we want to be able to give law enforcement officers police the answers they have to your questions. I did it in Blue Springs. When I was there, I worked in the same department as the police officers on this case?”

Chappell believes a prosecutor can also play a more intentional role when a juvenile judge decides whether to certify a minor as an adult.

Meet Melesa Johnson

Alyssa Jackson/KSHB

Melesa Johnson, the Democratic candidate, is Kansas City’s first public safety director and former Jackson County deputy prosecutor.

He agreed to meet at 31st and Prospect Ave., an area he has lived in his entire life. Some of his memories of growing up in his neighborhood involve witnessing violence from a young age.

“I vividly remember when I was young and 11 years old… a shooting at the BP gas station and I had to go on my stomach and stay still because my coaches wanted me to be okay. It was at that moment that I started to wonder why things are So?” Johnson said.

Johnson believes in continuing programs like Focused Deterrence to advocate for victims while offering those likely to commit crimes the opportunity to change their lives.

She believes there is much to do when it comes to crime prevention and intervention.

Johnson said, “Increase our clearance rates, reduce layoffs, invest in cell phone technology, resume drug cases across the board, and begin a new property crime prosecution division.”

As for additional resources outside of incarceration, he has ideas for how a prosecutor could advocate for specific solutions.

“We need a lot of workforce development, mentoring programs, and food insecurity programs to truly deliver on the promise of public safety. This area of ​​Jackson County could not be a more perfect representation and example of why we must attack this problem from all angles.”

Like Chappell, Johnson said she is committed to ensuring that juveniles who commit serious crimes are certified as adults.

Johnson does not believe that crime can be addressed in court, which is why she emphasized in her campaign being a “modern prosecutor.” That means making “transformative justice” a priority by giving nonviolent offenders the opportunity to change.

KSHB 41 reporter Alyssa Jackson covers parts of Johnson County, including neighborhoods in Overland Park, Shawnee and Mission. Share your story idea with Alyssa