◼ Paul Hagen’s Campaign Announcement - Arcata Eye
Wednesday, March 17, 2010
EUREKA – District Attorney Candidate Paul Hagen held a press conference and reception Friday, March 12 at the Eureka Woman’s Club.
“I love Humboldt County and I want to use my proven ability and experience to protect Humboldt County’s future,” said Hagen. “I have a vision for how the DA’s office can serve the people and I look forward to sharing this vision with the citizens of our diverse communities.”
Hagen has worked as a deputy district attorney in four DA’s offices and has worked under seven elected DAs. He has put together environmental task forces and prosecuted crimes in Humboldt, Del Norte, Mendocino, and Lake Counties.
“If I’m elected, I’ll set clear priorities for the DA’s office and provide support to staff to they have the direction and tools they need to deliver justice,” said Hagen. “We can make our Humboldt County communities safer by vigorously prosecuting crimes of violence, crimes against vulnerable people, and crimes against the public
Why I Am Running
I am running for District Attorney because I believe that together we can protect Humboldt’s future.
How do I know that I will do well in protecting Humboldt’s future? Because my life experiences have given me the proven ability to lead and the proven ability to deliver results.
I have taught in schools and universities. I have put on high-level conferences for both the public and for government personnel. I have taught in numerous law enforcement settings at both the state and federal levels. I have trained agency personnel, investigators and prosecutors how to make cases. I have the proven ability to train, to inspire, and to lead people.
I have worked as both a criminal and a civil prosecutor for more than eleven years in four different district attorney’s offices, under seven different DA’s. In each county I formed and led a multi-agency, cross-jurisdictional task force to investigate and prosecute crimes. I have successfully prosecuted and tried cases criminal and civil, large and small, against individuals, corporations and public officials. I have the proven ability to deliver results in the courts.
And I have learned through all these rich experiences how an effective district attorney’s office should be administered. I know what a district attorney’s office can and properly should do. I have the proven ability to get that done. And if elected, this I will do.
These broad experiences make me uniquely qualified in this election.
Who I Am
I grew up in the American Midwest. My dad was the son of immigrants, he was born on a farm, he did not graduate from high school, but went on to become a skilled electrician to support his family. My mom was the daughter of immigrants, she first learned to speak English in grade school, and went on to become a Registered Nurse before she married.
I am a product of a loving family.
Growing up I worked as a paperboy, a music teacher, a leader in student government in college, an intern in the United States Congress, and as a garbage truck driver. After leaving the Midwest I worked on many types of jobsites as a construction worker. I have worked in many types of office settings from temporary clerk to analyst. I have worked for nonprofits, for government agencies, and in the largest law firm in the State of California.
Work aside, I have built and raced motorcycles and cars. I learned how to custom hand-bevel glass, because it creates beauty. I am an avid open water swimmer and a triathlete in training year-round. Andmost importantly of all, I am a member of the World Famous — Crab Grass Band.
I believe in service to community. I have served my communities by volunteering my time as an educator, as a member of boards of directors, as a member of the Humboldt County Democratic Central Committee, for the State Bar of California, and as a member of the Arcata Planning Commission.
I am 55 years old and I have lived in Northern California for over a quarter of a century, as a husband with my wife of more than twenty-five years, and then as the father of our two daughters around whom our lives revolve.
I am a spiritually rich man.
And I am a family man who believes that there is no better place in the world than Humboldt County to live and raise my family.
What I Believe
Beyond one’s life’s experiences, what one believes sets the stage for what one does. My beliefs and upbringing have set the stage for what I will do if elected.
I will share with you how my beliefs and upbringing came together in being a parent. Here are two of the most important things I have told my children hundreds of times:
First: Three rules for success in life, which I told to them each day for years as they left for school with their mother:
Pay attention, Try hard, Do well. Pay attention, Try hard, Do well.
Second: The biggest rule of all:
Life is about other people. Life is about other people.
I believe these rules are the basis for the advancement of both the individual and of society as a whole. Because in this life we are all tied together. And because in this life we must protect each other and we must protect our common future.
And finally, I believe that each person has the obligation in life to give the best of what they have to the community. Because Life Is About Other People.
What I Will Do As Your District Attorney
I also believe deeply in the values of fairness and justice, community and safety. As your district attorney, I will instill these values in everything the office does.
I have trained myself for years to listen carefully to people, to be attentive and accountable at all times, and to exercise professionalism and sound judgment at every turn. As your district attorney I will emphasize a common sense approach to prosecuting crimes. I hold myself to very high standards and I will accept no less from my staff.
Based on these values, the DA’s office under my leadership will vigorously prosecute crimes involving violence, methamphetamine, abuse of children and elders, sexual and domestic abuse, and crimes against the environment, consumers and workers.
As your district attorney, I will give the very best of my life’s energies to serving the People.
The end result is that I will deliver fair application of our laws, and I will deliver effective, even-handed justice.
Close
We all cherish the diversity, the independence, and the richness of life that makes Humboldt County unique. We all want to protect this place, its way of life, and its future.
We live here because we believe in this place and we believe in each other. That is how I see it.
I pledge to you that if elected to serve as your district attorney, I will give the very best of what I have and what I am.
And so I ask you to please join my campaign and join me in protecting the future of Humboldt County..
Tags: DA, Hagen
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