John Kroger
From Ballotpedia
| John Kroger | |
 | |
| Oregon Attorney General | |
| Incumbent | |
| Assumed office 2008 | |
| Current term ends 2012 | |
| Political party | Democrat |
| Website | Official Oregon Attorney General website |
Contents |
Early life
Although Kroger was born in Ohio, he spent most of his young life growing up in Indiana and Texas. He joined the United States Marine Corps in 1983 at the age of seventeen, serving in a Force Reconnaissance Companies (FORECON) unit, a special operations force providing pertinent military intelligence to the combined combat elements of the Marine Air-Ground Task Force (MAGTF). He volunteered to go to Lebanon in the wake of the United States invasion of Grenada, but President Ronald Reagan withdrew United States forces following the 1983 Beirut barracks terrorist bombing attack before Kroger's unit could be transferred.
Education
- Bachelor's degree, Yale University (1990) in philosophy
- Master's degree, Yale University in philosophy
- Juris Doctorate degree, Harvard Law School (1996)
Professional experience
Upon graduating, Kroger moved to Washington, D.C. in order to work as a legislative assistant to United States Representative Tom Foley (D-Washington-5) and Senator Chuck Schumer (D-New York). He was appointed in 1991 to act as Bill Clinton's Deputy Policy Director for his 1992 presidential campaign. Following Clinton's victory, he served as part of the president-elect's transition team. For a short time during Clinton's inaugural year in office, Kroger was a senior policy analyst at the United States Treasury Department.
Shortly after obtaining his law degree, he worked as a clerk for a federal appellate judge in Brooklyn, New York. Kroger later joined the United States Attorney's office there as a federal prosecutor. It wasn't long before he obtained his first high-profile conviction, that of New York Mafia captain Gregory Scarpa, Jr. for racketeering and multiple homicides after a five-week trial. He also handled drug trafficking cases, successfully litigating against drug kingpin Juan "La Puma" Rodriguez and Colombian organized crime family boss Alphonse Persico, to name just a few.
In the aftermath of the September 11th terrorist attacks in 2001, Kroger worked extensively with the Federal Bureau of Investigations running down leads on potential New York-based terrorist cells through the allocation of search warrants and subpoenas. A year later he moved to Oregon where he replaced the ailing criminal law professor Bill Williamson at the Lewis & Clark Law School. In his time there, he received the Award for Teaching Excellence three times.
Political issues
Public records
Attorney General John Kroger has been sending Oregon voters mixed signals in regards to keeping his campaign promise of improving governmental openness. Though he appointed one of his attorneys, Michael Kron, to serve as the public records 'czar' in an effort to facilitate a "statewide standard for releasing government documents," his office has suggested that when it comes to criminal cases not only will Kroger not comment on them, he will not even confirm or deny open investigations on civil matters; a significant break with what has been done in the past. Some have said that this move "signals a loss of service for consumers." [1]
Furthermore, an interview Kroger gave with the Oregon Public Broadcasting (OPB) program, Think Out Loud, in December 2009 questioned his knowledge of the authority his office had to order agencies to do anything related to public records:
"Well, we are the legal adviser...In many cases I won't be able to order a state agency to release something. All I can do is tell them whether under the law whether we believe it should be released or not. In some cases, they may have a very solid argument for not releasing something that frankly I would prefer as a policy matter to release, so ultimately, I don't control the system." [2]
The Attorney General's Public Records and Meetings Manual, which Kroger made available online for free upon entering office, states without question that any individual who requests public records can appeal an agency's refusal to the attorney general, who "acts not as legal counsel for state agencies, but in a quasi-judicial role." In addition, the manual states further that "if the Attorney General orders the agency to disclose the record, the agency must comply with the order in full within seven days." [3]
Campaign contributions
| 2008 Race for Attorney General - Campaign Contributions | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total Raised | $1,048,841 | |||
| Total Raised by Primary Opponent | $837,511 | |||
| Total Raised by Gen. Election Opponent | $6,635 | |||
| Top 5 Contributors | Oregon Public Employees Local 503/SEIU $320,958 (30.6% of Total) | |||
| Oregon Education Association $50,000 (4.77%) | ||||
| The Bill Naito Co. $34,496 (3.29%) | ||||
| Democratic Attorneys General Association $25,000 (2.38%) | ||||
| Linda Kroger $22,000 (2.10%) | ||||
| Individuals v. Institutions | $385,338 (36.7%) | |||
| $593,591 (56.6%) | ||||
| In v. Outside State | $783,322 (75%) | |||
| $261,259 (25%) | ||||
Electoral history
2008
| 2008 Race for Attorney General - Democratic Primary [4] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Percentage | |||
 John Kroger (D)
| 55.8% | |||
| Greg Macpherson (D) | 43.9% | |||
| Write Ins | 0.3% | |||
| Total votes | 508,954 | |||
| 2008 Race for Attorney General - General Election [5] | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Candidates | Percentage | |||
| John Kroger (D)
| 72.6% | |||
| James E. Leuenberger (Constitution) | 11.2% | |||
| J. Ashlee Albies (Working Families) | 10.7% | |||
| Walter F. Brown (Pacific Green) | 5.1% | |||
| Write Ins | 0.4% | |||
| Total votes | 508,954 | |||
Awards
- Leo Levenson Award for Teaching Excellence (2004) from Lewis & Clark Law School
- Leo Levenson Award for Teaching Excellence (2007) from Lewis & Clark Law School
- Sarah Winnemucca Award for Creative Nonfiction (2009) from Oregon Book Awards
Contact information
Department of Justice
1162 Court Street Northeast
Salem, OR 97301-4096
Phone: 503-378-4400
Toll Free Phone: 800-735-2900
External links
- Official Oregon Attorney General website
- John Kroger's Facebook profile
- Lewis & Clark Law School - John Kroger faculty biography
- Project Vote Smart - John Kroger biography
References
- ↑ Oregon Live "Kroger appoints public records czar but limits consumer information" 2 Dec. 2009
- ↑ Oregon Live "Kroger's "not very clear response" on public records act" 8 Dec. 2009
- ↑ Oregon Department of Justice - Public Records and Meetings Manual
- ↑ Oregon Secretary of State: Elections Division - 2008 Primary Election Results
- ↑ Oregon Secretary of State: Elections Division - 2008 General Election Results
| Political offices | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by Hardy Myers | Oregon Attorney General 2008–present | Succeeded by NA |
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