Editor’s Note: This article has been updated to reflect a correction in Dawn Downs’ professional experience. 

On the ballot for Larimer County is the office of district attorney, a role that oversees all criminal cases in the county by representing the government in criminal cases that make it to court. A DA serves as a prosecutor when it comes to criminal matters, but they also work with law enforcement to determine if charges should be filed, as well as engaging in criminal justice policy, according to the National District Attorneys Association. In Larimer County, the incumbent DA Gordon McLaughlin is running against Dawn Downs.

Gordon McLaughlin

Elected as Larimer County DA in 2020 and running as a Democrat, McLaughlin is seeking a second term in the role. Before being elected DA, McLaughlin served as a deputy district attorney for Larimer County.

“As a district attorney, you can really have an enormous impact on the lives of victims of the community,” McLaughlin said. “I stood up to run for DA … so that we can do a better job of creating a safe and healthy community, and that also involves making sure that we’re being attentive to social justice issues.”

McLaughlin’s initiatives include addressing gun violence, sexual assault, domestic violence, hate crimes and criminal justice reform.

“If we want to reduce recidivism, the best way we can do that is often address the root causes of crime by getting someone into drug treatment and not jail,” McLaughlin said. “So we’ve really done a lot of work on those issues the last four years to make sure that we’re treating the whole community and making sure that we’re advocating for some of these other things as well.”

McLaughlin also has launched initiatives with behavioral health treatment through the Larimer Opioid Abatement Committee.

“Social justice and criminal justice do not have to be at odds like historical folks in law enforcement have thought,” McLaughlin said. “If we want to protect victims, the best way we can often do that is prevent crime, not just prosecute crime.”

Dawn Downs 

Dawn Downs is the first woman and the first unaffiliated candidate in the 8th Judicial District.

“I’m running unaffiliated because politics should not play a role in the DA’s office,” Downs said. “I’m a public servant and I’m a prosecutor before a politician ever.”

Downs formerly worked as a defense attorney and in the DA’s office, including as the Chief Deputy DA over the District Court felony division. She currently serves as the managing attorney and head of the Public Safety and Prosecution Section for the City of Fort Collins.

“A lot of people don’t know a lot about local politics, and really, the office of the district attorney is a critical office to ensure that we live in a safe community,” Downs said. “We have to have people that are willing to stand up for others and ensure that we can be safe and ensure that victims’ voices are heard and that their rights are upheld.”

Downs’ initiatives include public safety, victim support and rehabilitative support for crimes committed under substance abuse or mental health impairments, as well as accountability in the office.

“We have to prosecute the crimes that occur here in our community on behalf of the state of Colorado, and so we have a job and an obligation to the community to ensure that justice is sought without exception for every single person here,” Downs said. “We need to do that by making sure that victims’ and offenders’ rights are upheld and ensuring that we all live in a safe community.”

Reach Allie Seibel at news@collegian.com or on Twitter @allie_seibel_.