Jefferson County, Oregon, may spot only one name on the ballot for District Attorney this May, as former Wasco County DA Eric Nisley is currently the sole candidate for the position. The filing deadline is March 10th, according to reporting from OPB News.
Nisley’s candidacy comes as Jefferson County struggles with significant staffing shortages in its DA’s office. Currently, the office has only two deputy district attorneys, despite needing four, leading to a backlog of approximately 80 criminal cases awaiting review, Jefferson County DA Steven Leriche stated. The office has been forced to prioritize the most serious crimes, leaving those accused of lesser offenses in legal limbo.
Nisley previously served as Wasco County’s District Attorney for five terms, from 1999 to 2020, before losing reelection in 2019. He was temporarily hired by Jefferson County as a prosecutor in 2021 following his defeat. His tenure in Wasco County was marked by controversy, culminating in a 60-day suspension of his law license in 2018 by the Oregon State Bar’s Disciplinary Board. The board found that Nisley lied when he claimed he hadn’t made the Wasco County finance director the subject of an investigation into improper loans.
The finance director had alleged that Nisley targeted her after she rejected his sexual advances, allegations he denied. Bar officials dismissed further ethics complaints stemming from his time in Wasco County in 2023, according to reporting from the Columbia Community Connection.
Despite his past controversies, Jefferson County Commissioner Kelly Simmelink described Nisley as a “Madras born and raised guy, a Jefferson County guy through and through,” who is capable of performing the job. Simmelink also highlighted the difficulties in attracting and retaining prosecutors in rural areas like Jefferson County.
Jefferson County’s starting salaries for prosecutors are competitive with neighboring counties, even exceeding those in Deschutes County, which has a much larger population. But, the earning potential for experienced deputy DAs plateaus in Jefferson County compared to Deschutes and Crook Counties, creating a disincentive for long-term employment. The Jefferson County Board of Commissioners has discussed raising salaries but has not yet taken action, instead focusing on offering temporary housing incentives that have not been utilized.
Leriche, who resigned from his position last year to grab a job with the Oregon Department of Justice, remains in an acting capacity from the DOJ. He stated that the state should fund at least one full-time deputy DA position in Jefferson County, mirroring the support provided to public defenders. “Oregon’s set up to really, in a lot of things, take care of the population centers,” Simmelink said. “And in rural counties, we have the same constitutional obligations, but we have far fewer people and far fewer resources.”
The lack of a competitive election for District Attorney comes after Oregon Governor Tina Kotek passed over Nisley for an interim appointment to the position following Leriche’s departure. Kotek chose to allow Leriche to continue in an acting capacity from the DOJ whereas reviewing applications. Nisley was the only applicant for the interim position, according to Richard Lane, General Counsel to Gov. Kotek.
William Condron, a long-time public defender in Central Oregon, expressed concern that the prosecutor shortage impacts his clients, potentially complicating their ability to secure employment while awaiting case resolution. He also warned that chronic understaffing could artificially lower reported case numbers, impacting state funding for public defenders.