CHENEY – Stephanie Olsen was raised in Cheney, pursued her entire legal career in Spokane County, and is running to be its next prosecutor. She challenges incumbent Larry Haskell in a race that features two Republican representatives.
Olsen thinks she’ll be a good fit for the position.
“I’ve run a business before, I’m a good communicator, I’m a good listener, and that has been part of the problem (with the current prosecutor),” Olsen said. “I will go to the meetings — I will listen to other voices.”
Olsen has spent time as the prosecutor for Washington’s Strategic Highway Safety Plan Target Zero, which aims to reduce the number of traffic deaths and severe injuries on Washington’s roadways to zero by the year 2030.
According to her election website, Olsen received the Innovation in Traffic Safety award for implementing Spokane County’s electronic warrant system.
She has worked in Spokane’s prosecutor’s office and currently works in the Washington State Attorney General’s Office. She’s been a liaison between prosecutors, judges, and law enforcement and understands how to navigate the bureaucracy and red tape that holds the legal system together.
“I know how to get things done,” Olsen said.
Olsen’s electoral platform is all about raising the bar of the prosecutor’s office.
“It doesn’t start with huge sweeping changes, its starts with the tiniest of human interactions like saying hello to your fellow prosecutors when you walk into the office,” Olsen said.
One issue of contention between the two candidates revolves around Spokane County’s experimentation with supported release programs. According to Olsen, Haskell isn’t keen on the subject. But she emphasizes the need to discuss it openly.
“If you’re only thinking jail is the name of the game for everyone, 90 percent of those people get out, so where are they going? What are they doing? It’s just a cycle,” Olsen said. “When you’re open-minded enough to listen to other possibilities, everyone’s voices come in—there’s a lot of voices in this community that doesn’t get heard.”
Olsen connects the stymieing of voices within the prosecutor’s office to a massive amount of resource loss when veteran employees leave because of it.
“When that happens, you’re losing millions and millions of dollars in just knowledge— it’s an incredible loss for our community to lose these prosecutors,” Olsen said.
Olsen comes from a family steeped in law enforcement. Her brother is still a homicide detective in Seattle.
“There’s just a strong sense of justice in our house,” Olsen said.
Zachary Zorrozua, Cheney District 2 school board member, grew up across the street from Olsen and her family. He highly recommends her for the county prosecutor position.
“She exemplifies integrity, love for her community and has the experience to do an outstanding job in the position,” Zorrozua wrote in an email to the Cheney Free Press.
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