Roanoke Times
Copyright (c) 1995, Landmark Communications, Inc.
DATE: TUESDAY, February 28, 1995 TAG: 9502280088
SECTION: CURRENT PAGE: NRV-1 EDITION: NEW RIVER VALLEY
SOURCE: KATHY LOAN STAFF WRITER
DATELINE: CHRISTIANSBURG LENGTH: Medium
Showalter, 33, lives in Christiansburg and is the managing partner at Stone, Harrison, Turk and Showalter in Radford.
His candidacy has been rumored for months, but he said Monday he only seriously started to mull over the possibility in December and decided to run in mid-January. His announcement this week was not tied to Joe Painter's decision last week to drop his bid for the GOP nomination, Showalter said.
Showalter said his father, Josiah T. Showalter Sr., now deceased, was a well-known doctor who emphasized the importance of giving back to the community.
"I love Montgomery County. Montgomery County has always been very kind to me. ... I know that the county's given to me and I want to give something back," Showalter said.
Phil Keith, the Democratic incumbent, announced last week that he will seek his party's nomination to run for re-election.
Showalter sees the role of commonwealth's attorney as three-fold: prosecutor, educator and office manager. As an educator, Showalter said, "I would try to get out more to educate the public" about crimes and "the accountability for those crimes."
While carrying out those three roles, Showalter said, it is important to consider the victims and their families.
"A lot of times, the victims and the victims' families are left out of the system," he said.
Showalter is a 1980 graduate of Christiansburg High School. He obtained a bachelor's degree in history from Virginia Tech in 1984 and graduated from Florida's Stetson University College of Law in 1987.
He practiced law in Florida for two years before returning to the New River Valley in 1989. Showalter joined Ed Stone's firm in June 1991.
Keywords:
POLITICS
by CNB