Prosecutor Brent Eaton is running for re-election.
HANCOCK COUNTY — There is still work to be done, prosecutor Brent Eaton said. The long time county Republican has already announced his intention to seek another term. He officially filed candidacy paperwork in late January.
Now it’s just a matter of staying focused on the task at hand in his office while making sure the community knows he still has the desire to serve.
“I am running for re-election as your prosecutor so we can keep moving forward with the progress we have made,” Eaton said in a press release.
Eaton pointed to his work over the last several years as reason for the community to re-elect him, saying his office has restored support for law enforcement and has earned their trust.
“We continue protecting our communities by winning tough cases, such as sexual assault, murder and other major felonies,” Eaton said. “With the help of voters, we can keep moving forward for Hancock County.”
Eaton’s goal when he first ran is the same as it is now — to make Hancock County one of the safest areas in the state — and he beleives his office is continually doing that.
Eaton was first elected in 2014 when he promised to revolutionize the office. He was especially concerned with how drug crimes and crimes against children were approached.
“We’re proactive in both prosecuting these cases and working as a community partner to help prevent crime,” he said.
Eaton touts the fact he was a founding board member and former Vice President of Zoey’s Place Child Advocacy Center, which came online in late 2020. The child advocacy center has interviewed more than 120 children and worked with multidisciplinary teams to assess cases of potential child abuse or neglect.
Eaton noted he’s also helped to establish a Child Fatality Review Team to work with law enforcement, first responders, medical professionals and community leaders to ensure the safety of children in the community, by reviewing child fatalities and taking steps to prevent them in the future.
Eaton was glad to share information that includes a 100 percent conviction rate for murders, with four convictions totaling more than 200 years in prison. Under his leadership, the prosecutor’s office has handled more than 8,000 criminal cases and 10,000 infractions, issued more than 500 search warrants and handled more than 400 juvenile cases, he said.
If re-elected, Eaton says his plan is to keep a strong focus on crime victims.
Eaton acquired funding for a victims’ assistance coordinator, which helped victims collect more than $660,000 in restitution, and his team successfully prosecuted the county’s first rape conviction in nearly 10 years, he said.
Eaton is also proud of the establishment of a Sexual Assault Response Team to establish a formal framework of medical professionals, law enforcement and victim services to ensure the investigation of sexual assault cases is consistent with best practices, and to make sure victims are treated with courtesy, dignity and respect, he said.
Eaton also helped to secure a county grant to help fund an on-call sexual assault nurse examiner at the local hospital.
Eaton obtained his bachelor’s degree from Wabash College and earned his juris doctorate from the Indiana University McKinney School of Law in 2001. He and his wife Susan live in Greenfield with their family.
