Here's what the Cape & Islands District Attorney candidates want to do. Hear from them

BARNSTABLE COUNTY — Two candidates are vying to become the next Cape and Islands District Attorney — an office that's been dominated by Republican leadership since 1971.

After Michael O'Keefe, current district attorney for the Cape and Islands announced in January that he wouldn't run for re-election, three Republican candidates immediately jumped on the ticket, with Daniel Higgins, assistant district attorney for the Cape and Islands, immerging victorious after September's primary elections.

Higgins will run against Robert Galibois, a Barnstable-based defense attorney, who is running as a Democrat.

While Higgins has served in the Cape and Islands District Attorney's Office since 2009, Galibois was also assistant district attorney from 1997 to 2003, serving under then-Cape and Islands District Attorney Philip Rollins.

Shortly after O'Keefe's election in 2002, Galibois began practicing as a criminal defense attorney in 2003, subsequently opening a private practice in 2008.

The duties of a district attorney, who is answerable only to voters, include, working with state and local police investigating major crimes, determining whether a suspect is charged and what charges a suspect should face, recommending bail and how much the bail should be, confiscating property — even prior to a conviction, recommending the sentence for defendants who are convicted, offering an alternative to criminal charges, such as counseling; and deciding whether a plea bargain is offered to a defendant, according to the League of Women Voters Cape Cod Area.

More: What will be focus for Galibois, Higgins, in race for Cape and Islands district attorney?

The Cape and Islands District Attorney's Office prosecutes crimes in Gay Head (Aquinnah), Barnstable, Bourne, Brewster, Chatham, Chilmark, Dennis, Eastham, Edgartown, Falmouth, Gosnold, Harwich, Mashpee, Nantucket, Oak Bluffs, Orleans, Provincetown, Sandwich, Tisbury, Truro, Wellfleet, West Tisbury and Yarmouth.

We asked both candidates to provide information about their backgrounds, experience and priorities if elected. They are in alphabetical order.

Robert J. Galibois

Age: 52

Residence: Barnstable

Education: Boston College High School, University of Massachusetts Amherst, Massachusetts School of Law at Andover

Political Experience: Bourne Planning Board from 1997 to 2002; chairman of the Bourne Planning Board from 2001 to 2002.

Other Civic Involvement: Capital Outlay Committee, Finance Committee and School Building Committee in the town of Bourne. Volunteered at Massachusetts vaccination sites to assist in COVID vaccine distribution and organized teams of volunteers to prepare 100,000 meals for those suffering from food insecurity during this pandemic.

Employment Experience: Law Offices of Robert J. Galibois II

Why do you want to be district attorney?

The first priority of any district attorney must be public safety. Over the course of my 27 years working as both a prosecutor and defense attorney in courtrooms across the Cape and Islands as well as the entire commonwealth, I have gained the necessary experience across the entire spectrum of criminal cases. My caseload in courtrooms provides diverse experiences where I witnessed different solutions to common problems within our communities. Moreover, my lifelong commitment to serving the members of the community through both civic engagement and volunteer efforts, reveals my passion to serve.

Additionally, I will unequivocally utilize the power of the office to protect women’s reproductive health care rights while also protecting health care providers.

What are the most pressing issues in your district and how would you address it?

The opioid crisis remains at the forefront of our communities. For far too long there has been a critical need to establish residential treatment programs in the Mid- to Lower Cape areas as well as each island. Efforts to build such residential treatment programs are not within the traditional role of the District Attorney’s Office; however, and again for a long period, these are not traditional times. A district attorney should endeavor to work with a focus group consisting of other local elected officials, medical professionals in the field and private investors to explore ways to grow residential treatment.

Additionally, I would seek to launch new sessions dedicated to mental health and a veterans’ session in the district court. In these specialty sessions, teams of professionals and volunteers would work alongside our judges, probation officers, prosecutors and defense attorneys to identify and address the core issues that bring someone suffering from a mental health matter. Undoubtedly, these efforts would reduce recidivism and make our neighborhoods safer.

How do I differ from the other candidates?

The breadth of my experience over 27 years provides me with a unique vantage point in this race. My experiences across the entire commonwealth as well as in other states have allowed me to work with a vast number of district attorney’s offices. I have witnessed firsthand how many different types of district attorneys have tried to transform their priorities into practice.

Here on the Cape and Islands, there remains a disconnect between the DA’s office and the people it serves.

To develop and nurture the relationship between the District Attorney’s Office and the people it serves I have proposed three specific ideas to promote community engagement:

First, the creation of a full-time community engagement liaison whose exclusive responsibility will involve being present throughout the district every day and reporting directly back to me.

Second, building a community coalition, called the DA and US, with a chapter in every town on the Cape and one for each Island. The coalition will be comprised of local elects (members from the select board, school committee, etc.), local officials including police and community residents and monthly meetings will be held with our office.

Third, there are approximately 65 employees on staff. Each employee, including yours truly, will commit to 4 hours of community service each month.

All of these specific ideas express my unique vision of how the District Attorney’s Office can remain connected to the people it serves. These efforts complement the more traditional roles to promote public safety.

I also believe in the sanctity of elections and will honor the will of the voters by accepting the result of the election.

Daniel Higgins

Age: 39

Residence: West Barnstable

Education: Boston College, Suffolk University Law School.

Employment: Assistant district attorney at the Cape and Islands District Attorney's Office

Political Experience: None

Civic engagement: YMCA Cape Cod, Barnstable Bar Association, West Barnstable Civic Association, White Ribbon Day, Independence House, Earth Day Cleanup

Why are you running?

I am running for district attorney because I believe it’s important to keep experienced professional leadership at work in the District Attorney’s Office. My home is here in the district. I live in West Barnstable with my wife Elizabeth and our son Charlie. I want to keep our communities safe for my family and yours. This is not a place for on-the-job training. This is a job where experience counts. The district attorney has to lead the largest law firm on the Cape and that requires knowledge and good judgment, which only comes from experience. I bring that knowledge and experience to this race, and that’s why I am running.

What is the most pressing issue in your district and how would you address it? 

The most pressing issue remains drug addiction. It is a problem that has been hidden somewhat by the pandemic. But as the pandemic recedes, attention will once again focus on this issue. In our office, we have 18 Massachusetts State Police personnel, half of whom are dedicated to drug interdiction.

But we cannot arrest our way out of this scourge of drugs. We must continually work on improving treatment and prevention in medical facilities and schools. It takes all of society to do this, not just the criminal justice system.

The foregoing should not diminish other serious issues such as child and elder abuse, domestic violence and violent crime, all of which are important particularly if they happen to impact you or a loved one. In our office, we pay attention to all of these issues.

How do you differ from other candidates?

I differ from the other candidate in one important respect. I have devoted my entire legal career to prosecuting those who prey on our communities. I have the prosecutorial experience and knowledge of the criminal justice system to be district attorney and to lead a group of 25 assistant district attorneys. I have been an assistant district attorney for the past 13 years. I have prosecuted all types of criminal cases including murder. I have been in a leadership position in the District Attorney’s Office, supervising the attorneys in the five district courts in our jurisdiction. Being a district attorney is not like being a state representative or senator. It is an executive position where hard decisions have to be made.

I will continue to ensure that the assistant district attorneys who work in this office recognize the difference between those who come before the court out of human frailty and those who commit genuinely evil acts. While we try to help the first group with either substance abuse problems or mental health issues the second group must be prosecuted to the fullest extent of the law to keep our communities safe.

I bring that understanding and experience to this race and that is why I am the best candidate for this job.

Contact Rachael Devaney at rdevaney@capecodonline.com. Follow her on Twitter: @RachaelDevaney.

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This article originally appeared on Cape Cod Times: Galibois, Higgins vie to be the next Cape & Islands District Attorney