D.A.: Impressive results with scarce resources

The writer, the district attorney for Rowan County, is responding to a guest column in Thursday’s Post, “Dear D.A., Get tough.”

A priority for my office has always been and will continue to be aggressively prosecuting habitual felons and repeat offenders.

To illustrate this point, according to the N.C. Department of Adult Corrections, our office increased the number of habitual felons prosecuted in Rowan County by over 300 percent in 2012 as compared to the year prior to me taking office. In 2012, our county was No. 9 out of 100 counties in sending habitual felons to prison. In 2013 and 2014, our county was No. 11 out of 100 counties in sending habitual felons to prison.

These impressive results were accomplished even though the Rowan County District Attorney’s Office is not fully funded for our workload-to-staff ratio, according to the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts.

Many people do not realize that in 2011, the Justice Reinvestment Act, passed by the legislature, made substantial changes to the laws regarding sentencing. This Act significantly reduced sentences for habitual felons, and even made a probationary sentence possible for some habitual felons. In addition, the Act substantially limits a judge’s authority to revoke the sentence of a person who has violated his or her probation.

— Brandy L. Cook

Salisbury

About Salisbury mail service

This is in response to the Sept. 14 Letter to the Editor, entitled “Downtown businesses need better mail service.”

On behalf of the Postal Service, I apologize for any inconvenience the customer has experienced with recent mail service. As I shared with the customer, there have been recent operational changes that may have resulted in a change in delivery time for some customers.

As an independent federal agency that does not receive tax dollars for its operation, the U.S. Postal Service must sometimes make business decisions that can be unpopular. This was the case with the recent changes to some delivery routes in Salisbury.

First class mail volume continues to decline, allowing for some routes to be consolidated and those duties reassigned for improved operational efficiency.  Despite these changes, every route in the Salisbury Post Office is delivered each delivery day. Operational needs may dictate changes to the time or delivery person, but our customers should expect and receive regular delivery of their mail six days a week. If there are specific instances where this does not occur, customers should notify the Postal Service immediately.

As the officer-in-charge of Salisbury Post Office, I appreciate the customer’s comments and concerns. Our goal is for every customer to have a positive experience with their local Post Office. Customers are encouraged to offer feedback by calling 1-800-ASK- USPS (1-800-275-8777) or by visiting www.usps.com.

— D. Sherman Jourdian

Salisbury Post Office