Casey Anthony prosecutor upsets 24-year incumbent for state attorney
Wednesday, August 15, 2012
By: Amy Green

August 15, 2012 | WMFE - After a months-long bruising Democratic primary battle Jeff Ashton is Orange and Osceola County's new state attorney. Ashton defeated 24-year incumbent Lawson Lamar on Tuesday in the primary election for state attorney in the Ninth Judicial Circuit of Florida. No Republicans ran in the race. That means there will be no November face-off as 90.7's Amy Green reports ...

"Hello, everybody. Thank you all so much for coming out ... ."

That was a jubilant Jeff Ashton acknowledging supporters last night in Winter Park.

Ashton emerged the victor in a contest that pitted two bombastic personalities whose attacks often got personal. Lawson Lamar was elected state attorney in 1988. Jeff Ashton is perhaps best-known as a prosecutor in last summer's sensational Casey Anthony murder trial.

But Ashton said Tuesday he felt his notoriety from the Anthony trial only played a small role in his upset win. Instead in his victory speech focused on the changes he plans to bring to Central Florida's state attorney's office.

"To the people that work in the state attorney's office, I want to say to you today I am coming home. You are my family. And I am coming back in January to come back to my family, and I want everyone who works there to know that I look forward to working there with almost all of you. There will be changes. Probably not as many as people think."

Ross Wolf, a criminal justice professor at the University of Central Florida, says the race is important not only because Central Florida is getting a new state attorney for the first time in more than two decades ... but also because ...

"Citizens who elect a state attorney need to know that person can make decisions on who's going to be allowed to plea bargain based on the policies of the office, what kind of cases will go to trial and when they're going to go for things like the death penalty and juveniles that are brought forward into adult court are all issues the state attorney's office deals with."

During the campaign Lamar differed with Ashton over how he thought the office should be run.

But Lamar told supporters his work won't end until his term ends.

"I look forward with my wonderful wife and family to a great many years in this county living among the people that we have protected, that my team has protected over the years."

Lamar was a trial prosecutor and Orange County sheriff before he was elected state attorney. He also established the Metropolitan Bureau of Investigation, a vice and narcotic multi-agency task force.

At Jeff Ashton's celebration Apopka resident Steve Zellers was among the supporters watching the returns. Zellers said Ashton successfully prosecuted his sister's murderer in 1988.

"He's just so passionate about standing up for victims and their survivors and standing up for those who can't speak anymore. You know, he's going to make a great state attorney."

Ashton assumes office in January.