Steve Descano to run in Democratic primary for commonwealth’s attorney

Steve Descano (center) meets voters at his campaign kickoff event at Brion’s Grill in Fairfax.

Raymond F. Morrogh, who was elected as Virginia commonwealth’s attorney for Fairfax County in 2007, will face a challenger in the Democratic primary on June 11, 2019.

Steve Descano, a former federal prosecutor at the Justice Department, officially launched his campaign for the position Dec. 1. He is currently the chief operating officer and general counsel at Paragon Autism Services.

The commonwealth’s attorney is responsible for prosecuting crime in Fairfax County courts, including the violation of state laws and county ordinances.

Descano told the audience at his  campaign kickoff event Dec. 1 that he wants to focus on three values – community, equality, and justice – and bring more transparency to the office of the commonwealth’s attorney.

If elected, Descano says he will ensure that everyone caught up in the criminal justice system will be treated fairly. He promised to “reform the cash bail system that penalizes people for being poor.”

He also vowed to “eliminate the system that favors people who can afford a high-priced lawyer” and “end policies that lead to mass incarceration.”

In his work as a member of the Fairfax County Civilian Police Review Panel, Descano found most people don’t know who the commonwealth’s attorney is or what that office is supposed to be doing.

Morrogh is largely absent from public life and “has not been a leader in our community,” Descano says. “I will engage the community.” Being a commonwealth’s attorney “is a huge job. He has minimized it.”

According to Descano, Morrogh favors retaining the cash bail system, and also favors mandatory minimum sentences for drug crimes, which Descano says are unfair.

And while Descano applauds former Gov. Terry McAuliffe for putting in place a process to restore voting rights to certain convicted felons, he says Morrogh opposes the restoration of voting rights.

Descano also favors raising the felony threshold. Currently if anyone is convicted of theft involving anything valued at $500 or more, it’s an automatic felony. “That means you can’t get a job, housing, or a college loan,” he says. “I’m not going to ruin someone’s life and future because they stole something worth $501. That’s lunacy.”