Statement Regarding Search for Next Connecticut Chief State’s Attorney

Governor Ned Lamont today announced that Chief State’s Attorney Kevin Kane will retire on November 1, 2019. The following is a reaction from David McGuire, executive director of the ACLU of Connecticut:

“Connecticut’s Chief State’s Attorney has the power to change the tone and culture for all prosecutors in our state. The selection of a new Chief State’s Attorney presents an opportunity for Connecticut to become a state where prosecutors are active, vocal forces for decarceration and racial justice.

We urge the Criminal Justice Commission to commit to a national search, robust public comment and transparency during the interview and selection process, and to appointing someone who is truly committed, in action and in words, to decreasing incarceration and eliminating racial disparities in Connecticut’s justice system.

The ACLU of Connecticut and our Smart Justice campaign will closely monitor the search for the next Chief State’s Attorney, and we will strongly advocate for the state to select someone who will fully embrace their role in ending mass incarceration and racism. Nationwide, locales across the country are welcoming prosecutors who are committed to smart, progressive justice policies, and Connecticut can and should be next.

Smart Justice leaders pushed Kevin Kane into softening some of his positions on justice reform, and we hope and expect the next Chief State’s Attorney will play a much more active role in the fight to end mass incarceration and racism in the justice system.”