CAMPBELL WINS FIFTH TERM AS DISTRICT ATTORNEY

On July 15, dozens of Joe Campbell supporters gathered at the Wall Street Trading Company in Calhoun to watch the results of the Republican Primary, where voters gave Campbell a fifth term as District Attorney of the Cherokee Judicial Circuit. The race was called later than expected, just after 10 pm, but when all the numbers were in, Campbell carried the day with 52% of the total vote, including 60% of the votes in Gordon County.

In his victory speech, Campbell thanked his family, staff, friends and other volunteers for all the hard work and support they provided in the campaign. "I could not have done it without you all", he said. He also noted the excellent and overwhelming support he received from the Bar Associations of both counties as well as law enforcement in both counties as being a key to his success.

The vote totals were certified by Secretary of State Karen Handel shortly after the final precincts reported. Following his celebration speech, Mr. Campbell accepted a concession call from his opponent. Campbell faces no Democratic opposition in November, and by winning the primary he effectively won re-election as District Attorney.

Campbell Provides Substance on Important Issues in Bartow Debate

District Attorney Joe Campbell repeatedly displayed his prosecutorial acumen, and demonstrated to most in attendance that he is the qualified candidate for District Attorney, in the debates hosted at the Grand Theatre in Cartersville on Tuesday night.

According to the Bartow Daily Tribune, Jerry Hargrove, a debate attendee, said "[I] just want to find out how they stand on the issues that are important, not the issues that are ancillary,I'm fairly well tired of hearing about things that aren't related to the races. I want to hear about things that are related to the job they are supposed to be doing on behalf of the citizens." By all accounts Mr Campbell did just that. Instead of focusing on "hot button" social issues irrelevant to the job of D.A., Mr. Campbell focused on the performance of the office under his leadership and his qualifications to be district attorney.

He pointed out that under his leadership, the Cherokee Judicial Circuit (Bartow and Gordon Counties) is the "most active trial circuit in the state of Georgia, based on cases per judge." He also noted that his office addresses recidivism by recommending stiff sentences, especially in negotiating guilty pleas.

Campbell pointed out that he has stayed within his budget during his tenure as district attorney since 1992, He also noted his innovative methods for funding office needs, such as using drug forfeiture and welfare fraud monies so that the burdens would not fall on the local taxpayer.

Overall, the debate established that Campbell is the candidate running in the July 15primary who is ready and able to serve as District Attorney, and the candidate that best understands the issues the office must actually deal with. All citizens of Gordon and Bartow counties are encouraged to exercise your right to vote in the upcoming primary July 15.

D.A.'s Office In The News

While District Attorney Campbell has been on the campaign trail, the work of the District Attorney's Office has continued in aggressively representing the people of the Cherokee Judicial Circuit. The following are articles on some of the things that YOUR District Attorney's Office has been up to under the able supervision of District Attorney Joe Campbell:

The Daily Tribune

Jury: Man guilty of aggravated assault

Man pleads guilty to child porn charges

Area drug court to benefit drug abusers as well as community members

Jury: Woman guilty of battering Wal-Mart cashier

Jury issues verdict in third meth trial heard this week

Jury finds Bradshaw guilty of concealed weapon, drugs

Jury: Warren guilty of child molestation

Campbell in the News, Part II

Bartow Daily Tribune

Campbell to Face Coomer in July District Attorney Primary
May 22, 2008

Cherokee Judicial Circuit District Attorney T. Joseph "Joe" Campbell, who has thrown his hat in the ring for another four-year term, will face a challenger in the July primary…

Campbell, who had before ran on the Democratic ticket, also registered as a Republican…

"This time, for the first time, I have qualified as a Republican," Campbell, a Vanderbilt University and University of Georgia School of Law graduate, said in a press release. "My decision began to evolve as the national discourse from the National Democratic Party and its presidential candidates escalated.

"It became clear to me that as a Vietnam veteran that the current service and sacrifice of our men and women stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan could again become abandoned and forgotten as the Korean and Vietnam veterans had. I could not support that position and actually took the first step in this change by voting in the Republican presidential primary earlier this year."

Campbell spent 11 months in Vietnam, having last served as a first lieutenant in the U.S. Army infantry. He was awarded the Bronze Star and the Commendation Medal.

"I have carefully studied the positions and beliefs of the state Republican Party and determined that my service of over 15 years as your district attorney can aptly be labeled as 'conservative.'

"What with the tireless effort to keep the public and our communities safe from dangerous criminals, the support for the death penalty by making it a viable sentencing option in our circuit because the last actual trial occurred in the early 1980s, and by maintaining a responsible and fiscally accountable office with the resource provided by our supportive county governments, you can see that I have been a conservative elected official."

Campbell, who served as the circuit's first assistant district attorney from 1976 to 1980, is currently serving his fourth term as district attorney….

Campbell, a resident of Calhoun since 1974, was an attorney in Calhoun from 1980 to 1992, served as a city of Calhoun attorney for eight years and a Gordon County Board of Education attorney for six years.

He said he has tried more than 110 jury trials, including 31 murder cases; prosecuted more than 55 homicide incidents and five death penalty cases; advised more than 120 grand juries; and served as counsel for the state in more than 40 appellate cases.

Campbell, 61, said he is an experienced candidate and wants to continue to serve as district attorney.

"Probably almost 20 years of my 34 years in practicing law has been in prosecution and serving the public. It is a very rewarding and fulfilling experience.

"I don't feel that I am ready to go out to pasture. I mean, I feel like I have plenty more to give and [I'm] looking forward to doing that. Because I feel like I have the experience, maturity and have performed admirably for the public over these 16 years. It's not like I just want to retire."…

"I got the judges to agree to a case assignment system that works well. Prior to getting their approval, we had a case assignment system that we had to wait until after indictment to know who had what case. Of course we had to work them up, but we were in trial week swapping cases," he said. "I convinced the judges to do it from arrest so that our folks had a case, what we call a vertical assignment system, starting from the very beginning, building the case file and going forward."

In addition to teaming with the Child Advocacy Center, working to build a new drug court and operating in a circuit for which the case load Campbell said could support a fifth judge, he said he would like to see a state misdemeanor court.

"One of the most important things, as I see, and it's not that it would be a change for my office per se, but I've been advocating for a good while to the judges a state court to handle misdemeanors. Of course that's totally funded by the county. Well, in these economic times, you can't do that. Then you have to adapt to the case load," he said. "One of the things is that the misdemeanor case load that we have in Bartow is probably as big if not bigger than the total case load in Gordon County. So it's a difficult thing. You want to be responsive to misdemeanors as well as felonies, that's a lot of cases you have to deal with."

Calhoun Times

Candidates pitch 'open government' at forum
June 20, 2008
By Susan Kirkland

An open, efficient government was the central message among incumbents and opponents alike at the Gordon County 2008 General Primary Election Political Forum Thursday night.
Seventeen local candidates for eight offices were on hand to field questions from a media panel. About 250 people attended the event at the Calhoun Civic Auditorium….
Two candidates for District Attorney, incumbent Republican T. Joseph Campbell and Republican challenger Christian Coomer talked about experience and making the D.A.’s office more efficient.
Campbell cited his proven record at District Attorney where he has developed a pretrial diver-sion program for domestic violence offenders and those who commit misdemeanors.
“I’d like to see a small state court handle misdemeanors, especially in Bartow County,” Campbell said…
Democrat and Republican primaries will be Tuesday, July 15.
The forum is sponsored by WJTH, WEBS, Comcast, the Calhoun Times and the Gordon County Chamber of Commerce.
DVDs will be available for free checkout at the Gordon County Library, the Gordon County Chamber of Commerce, and the Fairmount Library.
Replays can be seen on Comcast CATV channel 44 on June 26 at 7 p.m., July 3 at 7 p.m. and July 7 at 7 p.m.
Last day to register to vote in the General Primary Election is June 16. Advance voting begins July 7-11 and absentee voting is currently available through July 11.

DA faces first challenge in 12 years
May 29, 2008

Gordon County voters will have a chance to vote in the first contested district attorney’s race in the Cherokee Judicial Circuit in 12 years.
Incumbent Joseph Campbell, who is seeking his fifth term as district attorney, is facing a challenge from Cartersville attorney Christian Coomer in the July 15 Republican primary.
Campbell, who has served as district attorney in the two-county circuit for more than 15 years, switched from the Democratic Party and qualified as a Republican this year.
Campbell said his decision to change parties began during the Democratic presidential primaries, when, he said, ”It became clear to me as a Vietnam veteran that the current service and sacrifice of our men and women stationed in Iraq and Afghanistan could again be abandoned and forgotten as the Korean and Vietnam veterans had.
“I could not support that position and actually took the first step in this change by voting in the Republican presidential primary earlier this year.”
Campbell has tried more than 100 cases as DA and 70 as assistant district attorney.
“This includes 30 murder trials, and we have brought the death penalty back to this circuit,” Campbell, who lives in Calhoun, told Gordon County Republicans.
“To administer justice fairly and impartially as I have done and which I pledge to continue to do does not require one to be a Democrat or Republican, but a professional prosecutor, which is why I seek each citizen’s vote regardless of your partisan or independent political beliefs,” Campbell said in a statement. “Remember, this election is not about who is the staunchest partisan, but who is the best qualified through experience, performance and maturity to lead your District Attorney’s office…
Campbell and Coomer are scheduled to meet during a political forum sponsored by the Gordon County Chamber of Commerce Community Development Committee Thursday, June 19 at 7 p.m. at the Calhoun Civic Auditorium.

Campbell Impresses at Gordon County Debate

District Attorney Joe Campbell faced his July 15 Republican Primary opposition in a debate hosted on May 20, as a part of a candidates forum hosted at the Calhoun Civic Auditorium. By the end of the debate it is estimated that between 70 and 80% of audience members sported Campbell T-shirts, buttons, or stickers, and the performance in the debate itself was a clear victory for Mr. Campbell and his campaign.

The debate questions focused primarily on the experience and qualifications of the candidates for the office, methods for dealing with the growing Gordon County population, and how to deal with the inevitable rise in crime rates associated with such a population boom.

In his closing remarks, Mr. Campbell stated "The choice in this election is clear and it is stark": you can keep a proven "warhorse" of a prosecutor, who is experienced, aggressive and fair, or you can gamble future of the office on an unproven, undistinguished opponent. This closing statement was met with thunderous applause throughout the auditorium.

The debate will be replayed on Comcast channel 44 in Gordon County, at 7:00pm on June 26, July 3, and July 7.

Campbell Campaign Attends Republican Headquarters Ribbon Cutting

The Bartow County GOP hosted a ribbon cutting ceremony for their new headquarters located at 162 W. Main St. in Cartersville. Although Mr. Campbell could not attend the ceremony due to prior commitments, he was represented at the ribbon cutting by his wife Sherry, his daughter and son-in-law McCall and George Govignon, and Chief Assistant D.A. Mickey Thacker. Representatives met and spoke with voters, and left literature for voters who will be attending the headquarters.

Campbell Serves as Judge at Georgia BBQ Classic

Saturday June 7, Joe Campbell served as a judge of the Georgia Barbeque Classic, held at Milam Farm in Cartersville. While Campbell judged, supporters, including "Josie the Pig"- an ardent Campbell supporter-handed out balloons to children and met with voters. District Attorney Campbell is running for re-election in the Republican Primary on July 15.