Longtime Republican incumbent District Attorney Richard Goldinger will face an Independent challenger, Jennifer Gilliland Vanasdale, in the Nov. 7 general election, his first challenger for the seat since he was elected in 2007.

Gilliland Vanasdale is a private attorney working at a “full-service” law firm, Gilliland Vanasdale Sinatra Istik Law Offices in Butler. She is a founding member of the firm.

The winner of the race is to be sworn into office for the four-year term in January.

District attorney’s role

The Butler County District Attorney’s office manages a budget of $2.52 million and oversees 21 employees — four clerical, three victim advocates, eight assistant district attorneys and six county detectives.

The district attorney represents the government in criminal cases, working with law enforcement to investigate crimes, determining which charges should be filed and prosecuting cases in court on behalf of the victims, according to the National District Attorneys Association.

Responsibilities also include shaping criminal justice policy by advising lawmakers and raising public awareness of criminal justice issues, according to the association, which considers itself to be the oldest and largest association of prosecutors in the United States.

In Butler County, the job comes with an annual salary of $211,495.

This year, Goldinger anticipates his office is on pace to have about 1,800 criminal cases. The office’s 1,258th case is scheduled for arraignment in mid-November. Cases considered within the 2023 count will continue through early 2024.

The caseload in 2022 was 1,774, according to the incumbent district attorney. The caseloads in the Butler County District Attorney’s Office averaged between 2,500 to 3,000 cases per year from 2008, when Goldinger took office, through 2015, Goldinger said.

About Goldinger

Goldinger is serving in his fourth term as Butler County’s district attorney. He ran uncontested in the Republican primary earlier this year; no candidates ran on the Democratic ballot.

Goldinger has described his approach to the work in campaign literature as “tough but compassionate” and “firm but fair.”

“My extensive experience both prosecuting and defending allows me to consider the facts of a case and apply the law as it should be when determining how a case should be resolved,” Goldinger told the Butler Eagle.

In his time as district attorney, the office has prosecuted more than 40,000 cases, he said.

His policies include asking judges to set high bonds for those charged with drug dealing and seeking long prison sentences for those convicted of dealing drugs. He also prioritizes cases involving driving while under the influence — directing his office to file charges and seek court dates as quickly as possible.

For a period of time, he said he personally prosecuted all of the DUI cases in his office.

“I continue to prepare all of the DUI cases in the office for DUI Court, which we have every other week, but I have learned that the administrative duties of the position take time, and I was unable to prepare cases for trial every month and run the office. So while I still consider myself a ‘working DA’ by going to court every other week, I rely on my highly effective and experienced staff to handle the regular caseload,” he said.

DUIs make up 40% of the office’s caseload, which requires special attention, he said.

“Further, it is my opinion that people driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol are the most dangerous individuals in our society,” he said.

When asked about his accomplishments in office, Goldinger highlights his role in the planning teams that created the county’s specialty courts, which include Drug Treatment Court, Veterans Court and Behavioral Health Court.

“These courts provide intense supervision and rehabilitation to those that have addiction or mental health issues that are causing them to enter the criminal justice system. By rehabilitating these people, we are assisting them in living crime-free, productive lives in our community,” Goldinger said.

Additionally, he noted the creation of a detective position, which is intended as a resource for all county school districts and schools, public or private. The detective was hired in August and has authority to file charges against students involved in criminal activity on school property and to assist in juvenile court proceedings.

The position was presented by Goldinger and approved by county commissioners in a January 2023 salary board meeting.

He was first elected district attorney in 2007 after challenging then Democratic incumbent Randa Clark and garnering 57% of the votes. He retained the seat, running unchallenged through the 2011, 2015 and 2019 elections.

“My entire career has been spent working in the criminal justice system. I have been a litigator in nearly 100 criminal jury trials, both as a defense attorney and as a prosecutor,” said Goldinger, who began work as a practicing attorney in 1995. “As a defense attorney, I represented thousands of defendants, both as a private attorney and as a conflict counsel representing indigent defendants.”

He said he is guided in his role by values taught to him by his parents.

“Namely, always try to do to the right thing. Granted, nobody is perfect, least of all me. However, when it comes to the supervision of my office and to the disposition of criminal cases by my office, I am always driven by what I consider to be fair and just,” Goldinger said.

He said he is seeking reelection because there’s more work to be done.

“I was born and raised in Butler County. I want my daughter and my friends’ and family’s children to be able to grow up in a Butler County that is safe with the lowest crime rate possible,” he said.

About Gilliland Vanasdale

Gilliland Vanasdale, Goldinger’s challenger for the seat Nov. 7, also is a lifelong resident of Butler County. She is an attorney working in private practice.

“I am running as an Independent because I am independent. I have worked for Republicans, Democrats and people of no party. I always strive for justice and have no regard for political affiliation when it comes to justice,” she said.

This race is Gilliland Vanasdale’s third run for public office. In 2019, she ran for county Common Pleas Court judge, cross-filing in the primary along with three other candidates for the job. Most recently, she ran for the same judgeship in 2021 — this time as an Independent in the general election to fill what was an open seat. She lost to Judge Joe Kubit, who cross-filed with both major parties.

Gilliland Vanasdale graduated from Duquesne University School of Law in 2001, taking evening and summer classes while working full time for Nationwide Insurance in Butler.

At Gilliland Vanasdale Sinatra Istik Law Offices, which she has managed since 2002, she said she works in many areas of the law, “from family law to juvenile and criminal law to personal injury, estates and more.”

“In our practice, I have handled some very high-profile abuse cases, and we have a winning record representing both sides — prosecution and defense. I always stand for the truth and justice,” Gilliland Vanasdale said.

She works at the firm with her husband, Gary Vanasdale, in an office on Butler’s Main Street, which is one of two buildings that they renovated. They also have an office in Cranberry Township.

Her decision to challenge Goldinger caused strife within the Butler County Republican Committee, when the state GOP committee removed her husband as its chairman last month, after her announcement. The conflict of interest was just one factor in the decision, the state committee said.

Her Butler office has two other law partners, who Gilliland Vanasdale said she hired and supervised. She said they have experience in criminal law and that she’s learned from them.

“Two of my fondest cases in my over 21 years of legal practice involve criminal court. In those cases, I helped juveniles and their families navigate the criminal (juvenile delinquent) court system and helped them to rehabilitate and grow into productive contributors to society. I love seeing their success,” Gilliland Vanasdale said.

When asked about her achievements, she pointed to accolades that could be confirmed on the legal network website, martindale.com.

“I am an AV-rated lawyer, which is the very highest rating an attorney can achieve, for professional excellence in the law and ethics,” she said. “I also am the only candidate with a perfect 10.0 AVVO score.”

Also through this network, she received the Platinum Client Champion Award.

“These accomplishments show the citizens of Butler County that I have the legal skills and commitment to work hard for them as I have for my clients for more than 20 years,” she said.

If elected, Gilliland Vanasdale said she would be guided by her values of truth and protection, especially of the vulnerable, which stems from her past as an adopted child in the foster care system.

“Everything I do stems from my childhood and knowing that I started with nothing — not even a name,” she said. “I relied on the Butler County Children & Youth Services system to protect me, and you can be assured that the people of Butler County can rely on me to protect them.”

Her interest in the district attorney position began after she said she was approached by many people to consider running.

“I am determined and never give up fighting for what I believe. We need to bring independence to our court system — it truly is not a place for politics,” she said.

If reelected, Goldinger identified fentanyl use, human trafficking and gun violence as three top issues that he would like to continue to address.

He said he would like to focus more law enforcement resources on fentanyl abuse and impose “stiff prison sentences for those that deal this poison in our community,” Goldinger said.

With regard to human trafficking, Goldinger said he wants to provide resources for both law enforcement and victims.

“Oftentimes, (trafficking) is occurring in plain sight, and we don’t realize it,” he said. “I want to provide law enforcement training to better detect this behavior and provide resources to the victims of human trafficking to allow them to heal and recover once they are removed from their trafficker.”

He noted that a grant-funded detective position was added to respond to an uptick in gun violence. The detective is responsible for tracking gun violence countywide, according to Goldinger.

“Once we can target where gun violence is more prevalent, we can devote more police resources to those areas,” he said.

When asked about her opponent’s goals, Gilliland Vanasdale said “human trafficking and gun violence are also real concerns” and that she does not believe Goldinger’s plan to combat drugs is effective.

“All you need to do is walk down Main Street to see drugs and the impact of drugs on our street,” she said.

She called Goldinger’s request for a school-specific detective a “campaign move.”

In her campaign for election, Gilliland Vanasdale has adopted the acronym SOS, which is threefold. She pointed to this when asked about the issues she would like to tackle, if elected.

“Stop sweetheart plea deals. Organize an effective office to try cases to achieve justice for all. Solve crimes of the past and protect our community,” Gilliland Vanasdale said. “These are my top three goals as Butler County’s next district attorney.”

When asked to define a sweetheart deal, Vanasdale said it is one that “benefits the criminals and their defense attorneys more than the victims and the community.”

She cited a January 2009 drunken driving case where two brothers were struck by a car while walking along Route 173 near Rock Falls Park. The driver initially was charged with two counts of aggravated assault by vehicle while DUI — a second degree felony — as well as misdemeanor counts of DUI, reckless endangerment and several summary driving violations.

According to court documents, seven of the nine charges against the driver were dismissed in a plea deal that saw him plead guilty to DUI and one misdemeanor count of reckless endangerment. One brother was severely injured in the crash and died seven years later.

“I am aware of one case that occurred in 2009 that she has made her bell cow for ‘sweetheart deals,’” Goldinger said. “The fact is, that case was not a ‘sweetheart deal’ but rather a plea bargain that was made based upon the facts of the case and the applicable law.

“Victims aren't always happy, as in that case, but that plea bargain was justified.”

Gilliland Vanasdale said, if elected, she would review all plea bargains and centralize preliminary hearings, holding them at one location. Preliminary hearings are currently held in the seven district judge offices throughout the county. Those offices are in Butler city, Butler and Cranberry townships, and Chicora, Slippery Rock, Saxonburg and Evans City boroughs.

In an attempt to achieve justice for all, Gilliland Vanasdale said, “Plea bargains will only be accepted if the victim, the court and I agree. Otherwise, we will try the case to a jury.”

Additionally, if elected, she said she will create a cold case committee within the county district attorney’s office.

“I want to involve the community and work closely with police to help them in any way I can to solve the many cold cases, many which involve children, in Butler County,” Gilliland Vanasdale said.

Goldinger said his opponent’s priorities “do not even register on my list of priorities.” He said his office, which has prosecuted more than 30,000 cases since 2008, does not make sweetheart deals.

Asked about her second priority, establishing an effective office, he said, “she doesn't elaborate beyond her cute cliches.”

He said trying more cases in a year would be unrealistic and costly to taxpayers. He said it pointed to his “opponent's lack of experience in the criminal justice system.”

“(It) would clog up the criminal justice system for years, and would result in a rise in crime because there would be insufficient resources to devote to criminal investigations and prosecutions due to trials occurring constantly,” he said.

With regard to cold cases, he said the Pennsylvania State Police have a cold case unit that actively investigates leads in cold cases.

“While I wholeheartedly support solving cold cases, it is hard to justify the taxpayer expense for a full-time case unit that is focused solely on that,” Goldinger said.