Ritter supporters: Attack misleading

Democratic gubernatorial hopeful Bill Ritter portrayed himself as a pioneering advocate for crime victims Wednesday in response to criticism of his record as the Denver district attorney.

Ritter is running for governor against Republican Congressman Bob Beauprez.

A Republican political organization, The Trailhead Group, has been blasting Ritter in television attack ads and e-mails for plea bargaining too many cases during his 12 years as Denver’s top prosecutor.

Trailhead, funded by wealthy GOP activists such as Pete Coors and Bruce Benson, has charged that Ritter plea bargained 97 percent of his felony cases. Trailhead also says Ritter avoided seeking the death penalty.

Ritter called the criticism unfounded, pointing out that he sought the death penalty seven times and, nationally, 95 percent of felony convictions are through plea bargains.

Wednesday, a group of crime victims and organizations that help crime victims defended Ritter, saying his record as a prosecutor is solid.

Joe Canota’s daughter was killed in a domestic violence situation more than 19 years ago. Ritter’s office helped him deal with parole hearings for the person convicted of his daughter’s murder.

“When I had to go to my first parole hearing in 1997, Bill offered to go,” Canota said. “The help I got from Bill’s office helped me get through that time.”

Matt Hogan, who sits on the board of the Denver Children’s Advocacy Center, said Ritter’s critics are not telling the whole story.

“Attacks on Bill Ritter’s position as a child advocate, just like attacks on his prosecution record, cannot withstand close scrutiny,” Hogan said.

Ritter has said he sent more than 12,000 felons to prison as a district attorney and that his conviction rate was 95 percent. But Trailhead Executive Director Alan Philp argues those numbers are misleading.

Philp claims Denver’s crime rate rose when Ritter was district attorney, a time when crime rates across the country declined. Ritter’s campaign says that claim is inaccurate, citing statistics showing Denver’s crime rate actually decreased while Ritter was in office.

“There is a whole lot of ways you can look at a record,” Ritter said. “We will do everything we can to speak about our record and speak about it in an honest way. But I think the people who speak loudest are those people who have been in the trenches . . . who know what we did to make their life a little better as they went through the system.”