The specter of serial killer Scott Lee Kimball has loomed over the race for Colorado Attorney General since May, when unsealed documents raised questions about the diligence with which Attorney General--then U.S. Attorney--John Suthers signed off on Kimball's 2002 release from prison.
Now Suthers's opponent is taking the boldest step yet to make the AG's handling of the case a campaign issue.
Kimball, who had been serving time in federal prison for check fraud, convinced the FBI that he had knowledge of a cellmate's plan to kill a witness in a drug case. Suthers signed off on Kimball's release under the condition that he assist the FBI in the case.
Upon his release, Kimball went on to kill at least four people. In September of this year, the Denver Post Reported that Kimball was under investigation for a fifth death in 2004.
Suthers has said he doesn't remember the case well enough to comment at length.
Yesterday, Democratic challenger Stan Garnett ripped Suthers's handling of the case in the Boulder Daily Camera.
"The case had to have been a top priority for John's office and if it wasn't, it should have been," Garnett said. "The top prosecutor in any office needs to know details. I pay a lot of attention to what's going on in my office, and I'm accountable for it."
The ad features the father of one of Kimball's victims.
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