Mecklenburg County is seriously lacking prosecutors and the district attorney's office has been understaffed for years. This year, The DA asked for 26 new prosecutors to handle the workload and the legislature responded with 13. As it is now, the majority of criminal cases are dismissed or plead down because of the lack of prosecutors. This is ridiculous & we need to let our elected officials know.WCNC interviewed Mecklenburg County District Attorney Peter Gilchrist, who said, "Well it’s a great start. “I think all of us are very appreciative of what our legislators did for us."
Gilchrist has lobbied for more help for years, but with such a large backlog of prisoners, the added help may not equal fewer plea bargains. As critical as the need is right now- the new prosecutors won’t be hired until January of next year.