Auburn, CA  March 31, 2009 – Placer County’s Acting Assistant District Attorney, Ronald "Scott" Owens, officially announced Saturday that he is running for District Attorney of Placer County in the 2010 election.  Currently serving as the Acting Assistant District Attorney to incumbent Brad Fenocchio, Owens made his formal declaration to replace Fenocchio in front of a large crowd of over 600 supporters gathered at a campaign kickoff dinner Saturday night.  Fenocchio, who spoke at Saturday’s event, announced last September his plans to retire and not seek re-election in 2010 and has expressed he fully supports  Owens’ candidacy to replace him. “I can think of no better person to be the next District Attorney of Placer County than Scott Owens”, stated Fenocchio.

In addition to Fenocchio, Placer County Sheriff Ed Bonner and Roseville Mayor Gina Garbolino spoke to the large crowd expressing their support for Owens and reasons why they have endorsed him. Mayor Garbolino stated, “Scott has a great understanding of criminal justice.  He is community minded, thoughtful, approachable…but also has the toughness and skills to be a great DA.  I am very proud to support Scott for District Attorney. ” Sheriff Ed Bonner added “During the nearly two decades I have been fortunate enough to work with him, I have come to know and respect Scott Owens as a true champion of victims rights and look forward to continuing to work with him as our next District Attorney.”

The audience at Saturday night’s dinner, hosted inside the Placer Hall building at Auburn’s Gold Country Fairgrounds, included over thirty elected officials from throughout Placer and neighboring counties, including all but one of the five Placer County Supervisors (Robert Weygandt was unable to attend though he has endorsed Owens), several judges, Assemblyman Ted Gaines and City Council members from all of Placer County’s cities. Owens also had hundreds of grassroots level supporters, friends and family on hand to see him make his formal announcement and show their support for the long-time Placer County resident.

In a showing of the law enforcement communities support, there were a tremendous number of law enforcement officials and officers present. “Placer County is lucky to have some of the finest law enforcement officers, investigators and prosecutors in the Country. Those on the streets tonight, and those here, work hard every day to ensure the residents of Placer County are safe. But they can’t do it alone. They need a District Attorney’s office that will continue to be aggressive and strong in their support of the officers and investigators in the field and the community they serve.” Owens stated during his remarks. “In addition, the prosecutors in our office need a District Attorney who will support them in their pursuit of justice for the victims of crimes. It is for these reasons that I am proud to say that in the 2010 election, I am running for District Attorney of Placer County.”

Summary Biography:
Ronald “Scott” Owens has been in law enforcement for more than 25 years working at the Placer County District Attorney’s office since 1990 and working for the Placer County Probation Department prior to that. Since beginning his law enforcement career, Scott has seen the many changes that have taken place within Placer County and the criminal justice system. During his time with the District Attorney’s Office, he has prosecuted all manners of crimes, from driving under the influence cases to homicides. As a Deputy District Attorney, he tried the case of People v. Kidwell, the first three strikes case to hit Placer County. He also prosecuted People v Townsend, the first “High Tech” trial in Placer County, and People v. Eggen, the Colfax bombing case that made national headlines in 1995. In 1998, Owens was chosen by his peers as the “Prosecutor of the Year”, following his successful prosecution of a high profile case that included homicide/carjacking with kidnapping and bank robbery.

Owens earned his Bachelor’s Degree in Criminal Justice from the California State University, Sacramento in 1986. In May of 1989, he received a Juris Doctorate from McGeorge School of Law, University of the Pacific.

Owens grew up in Placer County living in the Auburn and Colfax areas and has consistently been active in many community activities and organizations including the Colfax High School Track and Stadium Project, Colfax High School Parent Club, The Tommy Apostolos Fund, the Roseville Police Athletic League and many more.