PORT TOWNSEND — Michael Haas, Jefferson County deputy prosecutor, announced Monday that he is withdrawing from the race for Jefferson County sheriff.
Haas, a Democrat who serves as deputy prosecuting attorney for juvenile matters, said county budget cuts were expected to increase the workload in his office and would leave him little time for campaigning.
The Prosecuting Attorney’s Office is expected to lose a deputy prosecutor because of layoffs by July 1 under budget cuts approved by county commissioners last week.
“In terms of caseload, the prosecutor’s office is reaching a point of critical mass,” Haas said. “If I were to spend all of my free time campaigning over the next several months, then leave for the sheriff’s office, it would place an unacceptable burden on that office.”
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The rest of this story appears in the Wednesday Peninsula Daily News Jefferson County edition. Click on “Subscribe” to get the PDN delivered to your home or office.