In a first for Schuyler County, Missouri, the winner of Tuesday’s election for local prosecutor said he does not want the job. Defense attorney Ben Gray won the race by virtue of the fact that no candidate was on the November 2 ballot, but some voters wrote in Gray’s name, possibly because he ran for the position of associate circuit judge in the Democratic primary in August, but lost.

 

The district attorney post became vacant after incumbent Brenda Swedberg-Bruner ran for a judicial seat.

 

In a letter to the Schuyler County Clerk, Gray explained that if he accepted the part-time job of prosecuting attorney, he would have to give up his normal practice as a full-time criminal defense attorney, so he preferred to remain in private practice.

 

Missouri Governor Jay Nixon will now have to appoint a prosecutor for Schuyler County, but that probably won’t happen until January.

-Noel Brinkerhoff, David Wallechinsky

 

Schuyler County Still Lacks Prosecutor after Election (Associated Press)

Benjamin Gray Letter (pdf)