Amy Ashworth runs for Commonwealth’s Attorney with focus on juveniles, domestic violence

Amy Ashworth, an attorney in Nokesville, wants to bring her prosecutor experience to the office of Commonwealth's Attorney. She is bringing awareness to fair handling of juvenile crimes, domestic violence focus, and discrimination in the justice system.

Name: Amy Ashworth Party: Democrat Town: Nokesville Running for: Commonwealth's Attorney Website: voteashworth.com, Twitter, Facebook Work: Attorney Education: James Madison University for an undergraduate degree in Business Administration and George Mason University for a law degree. Community Involvement: Amy Ashworth and her family has been actively involved in the Prince William County community since moving here in 1997. Ashworth is actively involved in 4-H as a parent volunteer and currently serves as Treasurer for the Nokesville 4-H club. She also volunteers with the Prince William County Bar Association breakfast for the homeless, presents at “So You’re 18” programs serving local high schools, and participates in the “Wills for Heroes” program. She taught Sunday School at Trinity Episcopal Church. In her professional life, Ashworth served as Guardian Ad Litem for the 31st Judicial District, where she advocated for abused and neglected children in the justice system. She was President of the Prince William County Bar Association, serving from 2010 to 2013. She is also an adjunct professor at George Mason University, and has been a mentor to many young law students. As a Young Lawyer Conference Representative to the Virginia State Bar from 1995 to 1998, she started the “So You’re 18” program, which provides information and guidance to high school seniors about how the law affects them as adults. She also started a program to distribute a senior citizens handbook at senior centers to educate older residents about legal issues, such as Medicare and wills. Questions and Answers PL: What are the top three major issues facing the district you wish to represent?  Ashworth: The top three issues in our criminal justice system in our community are the fair handling of juveniles, domestic violence, and discrimination within our justice system. PL: What concrete solutions do you propose to address these issues? Ashworth: First, we need to focus on juveniles. We need to stop tagging them as felons, find ways to divert them away from the criminal justice system, and provide services to them and their families so they can become healthy and productive members of society. As a mother of two teenage sons, this is extremely important to me. On Day One, I will assign a senior attorney to exclusively handle cases involving juveniles. Second, we need to focus on domestic violence. Domestic violence is the most common call for service by police and accounts for many homicides in our jurisdiction. On Day One, I will assign a senior attorney to exclusively handle domestic violence so we can pay more attention to the serious domestic violence cases and sort out the minor “push-and-shove” cases fall within the mandatory arrest policies of the police departments and avoid unnecessary convictions. Third, we must face the reality that discrimination pervades our criminal justice system. To address this, I will diversify the Commonwealth’s Attorney’s office, mandate implicit bias training, limit cash bail, and uphold strict standards. I will limit the prosecution of low-level offenses like simple possession of marijuana and driving on a suspended license to avoid unnecessary convictions and reduce our jail population.

PL: From your perspective, what is the job description of the office you’re seeking?

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