(Image: King County Prosecutor’s Office)

Newly elected King County Prosecutor Leesa Manion was sworn into office Monday at the King County Courthouse.

“We all want to be seen. We all want to be understood. We all want to be recognized as worthy. We all want equal opportunities. And we all want our lived experiences to be valued. And we all want to be safe as our authentic selves,” Manion said in her prepared remarks in a speech that also emphasized her intent to work closely with multiple systems and “interventions” including the Seattle City Attorney’s office.

“The deep-rooted call for belonging is universal, and I know in my heart that every time we answer this call, we march closer to equity and justice,” Manion said.

The first person of color elected King County Prosecuting Attorney and the first Korean American woman in the United States to serve as Prosecuting Attorney, Manion was part of the county’s legal team for nearly 30 years before entering the race last year to replace retiring incumbent — and her boss — Dan Satterberg.

The longtime Satterberg lieutenant defeated Federal Way mayor Jim Ferrell in November after a campaign that emphasized Manion’s years working in the prosecutor’s office and pledges for continuity in diversion reforms. Ferrell, meanwhile, painted himself as a tough on crime Democrat.

Manion with Davison at Monday’s ceremony (Image: King County Prosecutor’s Office)

But Monday, Manion also made public safety and working in coordination Seattle City Attorney Ann Davison’s more aggressive approach to prosecution a center of her ceremony.

“As I have said many times over the past year, public safety is my number one priority,” Manion said. “I envision a collaborative model of public safety where multiple systems and interventions operate in concert with one another. Public safety means we, without question, prosecute violent crime, sexual assault, and gun crime – and that we prioritize our resources to ensure these crimes receive timely and necessary accountability.”

HELP KEEP CHS PAYWALL-FREE
Subscribe to CHS to help us hire writers and photographers to cover the neighborhood. CHS is a pay what you can community news site with no required sign-in or paywall. To stay that way, we need you.

Become a subscriber to help us cover the neighborhood for as little as $5 a month.