Editorial: In tough race for AG, DeWine stands out

When Mike DeWine ran for state attorney general nearly four years ago, there were concerns the longtime Ohio politician wasn't committed fully to the job.

But DeWine has answered the questions about his commitment in the manner you'd hope: through good, hard work. He's managed to solve a backlog of DNA kits in rape cases, expanded resources in the state's crime lab and created strong initiatives to help combat the heroin epidemic and consumer fraud.

For those reasons, we believe DeWine is the right choice for Ohio voters in the Nov. 4 election.

There's no arguing the numbers in the rape kit backlog issue. The turnaround time went from 125 days to 22 days, and the entering of those results into state and national crime databases helped to convict rapists who had managed to evade prosecution in the past.

His work on the state's drug problem includes a heroin unit that has already helped to arrest and prosecute more than 100 people across the state. The unit includes a grass-roots effort to bolster drug abuse prevention on the local level. DeWine also created an economic crimes unit that targets people who rip off Ohioans, whether they are identity thieves or those who prey on the elderly.

That's not to say DeWine is pure in his approach to the office. In fact, we've seen too much political gamesmanship from him in the past four years. He's interjected himself in far too many cases outside of the state and faced intense scrutiny on the awarding of contracts from his office. His recent move to withhold the security footage of a controversial police-involved shooting in his home county was, in our mind, contrary to the public records law and also aggravated an already volatile situation.

DeWine's opponent in the election, David Pepper, has been on the offensive for the majority of his campaign. One of his criticisms withstands scrutiny — that of DeWine's three-year wait to have the first meeting of a heroin task force, which took place last week. Pepper rightly chides him for waiting until the election cycle to convene a task force for a problem that emerged before he took office.

In the end, however, Pepper hasn't adequately made his case that he would handle the office better than the incumbent.

A second term for DeWine seems the best choice for Ohio.