Prosecutor Race

Is this John McDonough who was once mayor of TR and who had worked for Upjohn, etc? If so, I didn't realize he had embarked on a law career (although I knew he had gone to Cooley.)

Oops, I think I am thinking of a different McDonough - but probably the same family tree!

this is the son of that mcdonough, the dad is the current fabuis township supervisor

Where do the prosecutors come off firing they ones that work for them and run against them?

Originally posted by FirstHand

Where do the prosecutors come off firing they ones that work for them and run against them?

I believe this same thing is happening in Branch county as well. Seems to be the trend to those who oppose the boss.

x80 yes it happened in branch county as well! I can hear a major lawsuit coming on! You can't fault the ones running against their boss they are trying to better there selves. The current Branch County prosecutor ran against his boss and won. His boss didn't fire him!

As a department head, Mr. Fisher does have the right to hire and fire, I think. Unless the rules are different for the public domain. That doesn't make it right.

I know the elder McDonoughs. Their son would make a fine addition to the prosecuter's office...oh wait, he was. This is more than just opposing the boss. Mr. McDonough stated that his reason for running was that he knows that Fisher had planned to quit part way through his term. He said, and I agree, that this wouldn't be fair to the citizens of St. Joe County.

The Kalamazoo Gazette carried the story further and indicated that the current prosecutor was intending to tie things up to ensure who his successor was. Nice to see that this young man has principles he believes in, he should be encouraged, not fired.

I can tell everyone that this all came to a shock to me upon learning of the situation. John is an exceptional prosecutor. I have worked closely with John in many cases and have always had the utmost respect for him. He is passionate about his job and his service to the citizens of this county. If this marks the end of his employment within our courts, we have suffered a crippling loss.

You have probably seen John in the community without recognizing him. He is regularly present at juvenile outreach programs and works VERY closely with our juvenile court. much of this is done on his own time. He is committed to the community and the reformation of the juvenile offenders. Isn't that why we're here?

I respect Mr. Fisher very much and have known him for many years, but this is not acceptable. John is a graduate of TRHS. His family and life is here in our community. He is a TOP NOTCH prosecutor.

I do not agree with the way the county is treating their younger prospects for offices. It seems that if you challenge the "Good Old Boys", they'll get rid of you or try to smear your reputation.

I would hope that all of you will look into this. We are talking about an office that serves the entire county, operated by elected officials. This is not a private business where you cross the boss and get fired. If we were talking about someone that had a history of poor performance or problems, by all means fire the employee. That is not the case here. This is REDICULOUS.
We should not allow this age old way of doing business at the county level to continue.

Isn't Mr. McDonough the young prosecutor that did the detailed research and put together the Hostedler (sp) case that Mr. Fisher was successful in winning? I seem to remember how Mr. Fisher commended this gentleman, publicly, stating that he couldn't have won without all Mr. McDonough's hard work as an intern. It is true that Assistant Prosecutors are "at will" employees but this is classic "Good Old Boy Club." Mr. McDonough can still be a productive "team member" and run a campaign against his supervisor.

Much has been made of the firing of prosecutorial candidate John McDonough (28). It is easy to empathize with people who suddenly find themselves searching for a new job extremely easy. So, why would anyone who is running for office do things that make their opponent more empathetic? If I were Mr. Fisher, I might have kept Mr. McDonough as assistant prosecutor, and then increased his workload in order to make it difficult to run an effective campaign. Had Mr. Fisher had done this, this story would not have been front page news, and Mr. McDonough would not have been the recipient of so much free publicity. Again, I ask why?

I have, on a couple of occasions, had the privilege of meeting Mr. Fisher. He struck me as a very smart, thoughtful, and honorable man who takes his duties as a public servant seriously. It is his responsibility to make sure the prosecutor's office runs efficiently and effectively for the best interests of the community even if doing so clashes with his best interests politically.

Keep in mind, this is a relatively small office with only five attorneys. They must operate as a team. In order to do that, they must be able to trust one another’s judgment and integrity. I can only imagine the chaos that would ensue if two members of such a small team were jockeying to be the boss. THIS is the reason assistant prosecutors are asked not to run against their boss as a condition of employment. THAT is the promise Mr. McDonough made and broke three short years later. Mr. McDonough was not fired because Mr. Fisher had a political axe to grind. He was fired because the community needs a prosecutor’s office free from political distractions and infighting. If their situations were reversed, I would hope Mr. McDonough would have done the same.

However, Mr. McDonough says he doesn't understand why he was fired. I believe him. His entire adult work history consists of the three years he has spent as assistant prosecutor. It is a testament to the tight ship that Mr. Fischer runs that Mr. McDonough has never had to work on a sinking one.

One final note: Mr. McDonough knew that his promise not to run against his boss was a condition of employment. Tough choices sometimes mean tough consequences. Accepting responsibility for the choices we make is a sign of maturity. Maturity, as well as experience and patience are all qualities we should look for in our elected officials.

Sheebs, So what you are saying it is alright for doug to only fulfill part of his term and then appoint someone into that office? I don't think that is right! If you are going to run for office you should fill the terms of that election unless there is some medical reason you can not fulfill it!

Whether or not it's alright to only serve part of a term and then appoint someone else is a matter of perspective. Let's not be naive here. If Mr. McDonough had been the named successor I seriously doubt his indignation over the situation would be so vocal.

Sheebs naive humm lets see we have a prosecutor who wants to fool the people that he is going to serve them for 4 more years. If he were to appoint someone else Is that right? It's not fair to this county! I like Doug he has done a great Job this came as a shock to me that John was running against him. But Doug shouldn't fool the public! He could have the person he wants to to take over run for the office and support them! Who is it that he is planning on appointing to his office?

I didn't realize that it would be the PA who could determine his successor if he were to leave office before his term expired. In what other public (elected) positions does someone have the chance to appoint his own successor in this case scenario? When there are vacancies (for whatever reason) I always thought the Governor had the power/responsibility for appointing a replacement even if it were a US Congressman or US Senator from said state (to fulfill the remainer of that term that is). I thought too that there was a predetermined line of succession for certain elected positions. I wonder how this rule came into play?