Linn County Attorney named president-elect for Iowa County Attorneys Association

CEDAR RAPIDS - Linn County Attorney Jerry Vander Sanden was recently elected to serve as the president-elect of the Iowa County Attorneys Association during last month's annual fall conference.

Vander Sanden, who has served as the Linn County Attorney since 2010, is also a member of the association's board of directors.

'I am proud and excited to serve as President-Elect,” Vander Sanden said. 'I am always interested in exploring ways to improve the court system that will promote the ideals of fairness and justice for all.”

Vander Sanden will start his term as president in 2019. Scott County Attorney Michael Walton was elected as president for 2018.

Only elected county attorneys can serve as officers of the association. Assistant county attorneys participate as members in the association but can't serve as officers.

According to the association's website, the group was formed in the mid-1920s to encourage and maintain close coordination among prosecutors and to promote uniform and efficient administration of the criminal justice system through cooperation with law enforcement agencies, monitoring legislation and to provide continuing legal education for the attorneys.

During the association's spring and fall conferences, the prosecutors share their experiences with different cases from the various counties across the state, and have speakers come in to provide education and training about topics. In November, the training topic was implicit bias, Vander Sanden said.

'The conferences promote camaraderie among prosecutors and helps us stay current on changes in the law, and alerts us to emerging trends in the criminal justice system,” Vander Sanden said.

For instance, Vander Sanden said he received some good advice on how to handle a defense lawyer in a Cedar Rapids murder case from a colleague who had dealt with the lawyer in a Black Hawk County case.

One of the duties of the president-elect is to chair the association's best practice committee. The topic being studied this year is officer-involved shooting investigations.

Vander Sanden said there hasn't been an increase of those in Iowa according to Iowa Division of Criminal Investigation, but the committee chose this issue because there has been an increase at the national level.

'A close review of policies and practices will be beneficial in terms of preparing Iowa prosecutors to properly handle these incidents when they occur,” Vander Sanden said.

Vander Sanden reviewed one high-profile case late last year, involving Jerime Mitchell, who was shot by Cedar Rapids police officer Lucas Jones during a traffic stop on Nov. 1, 2016. After Jones pulled over the truck Mitchell was driving for a busted taillight, the incident escalated to an altercation and Jones fired three times as Mitchell drove away. A bullet paralyzed Mitchell from the neck down.

Vander Sanden brought the officer-involved shooting before a grand jury, which cleared Jones. Neither Jones nor Mitchell were charged in the incident.

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