Prosecutorial discretion is the prosecutor’s executive authority to decide whether or not to file criminal charges in a given case. Historically, it was designed to ensure that the strict letter of the law did not trample over the realities of human circumstance or drain finite community resources.
Today, however, that discretion is under unprecedented attack in Indiana. As progressive prosecutors nationwide have begun utilizing this power to publicly decline the prosecution of low-level, non-violent offenses like simple marijuana possession, conservative state legislatures have retaliated. The result in Indiana is House Enrolled Act (HEA) 1006, a law designed to investigate, defund, and potentially replace local prosecutors who make blanket pledges not to prosecute certain crimes.
This legislative overreach has created a stark dividing line in the Monroe County Democratic primary. It has forced a choice between an incumbent who wishes to quietly navigate the state’s threats and an insurgent challenger who believes that transparency and liberal values are worth defending out loud.
At the recent Democratic Socialists of America (DSA) debate, incumbent prosecutor Erika Oliphant made her stance clear, explicitly blaming Marion County Prosecutor Ryan Mears for provoking the state legislature into passing HEA 1006. The implication was that by making his non-prosecution pledges public, Mears drew the ire of the Republican controlled Statehouse, and therefore, prosecutors should keep their heads down and handle reform quietly.
But the “quiet” approach is, fundamentally, political cowardice.
When an office operates on unwritten policies, retaining the law on the books but privately declining to prosecute certain offenses on a “case-by-case” basis, it sets the stage for systemic bias. Without a clear, universally applied public policy, discretion inherently favors those with the resources and connections to navigate the system, while historically marginalized communities continue to face the brunt of stops, searches, and charges. True justice requires the courage to say the quiet part out loud.
Benjamin Arrington is a product of liberal values in a vastly Republican state. By staying true to those values and pledging absolute transparency, he recognizes that he may invite a fight with the Statehouse. But it is a risk worth taking. Voters deserve to know exactly what standards their elected prosecutor will apply. Refusing to make those public commitments out of fear of state retaliation is disingenuous to the progressive voters who demand systemic change.
Despite the looming shadow of HEA 1006, the reality is that the path to and from this legislation has largely been political theater. Ryan Mears made his public pledges years ago, the legislature passed their oversight bill in retaliation, and today, Mears still stands as the prosecutor of Marion County, continuing to protect his community’s priorities.
This survival underscores a crucial democratic principle: the voter mandate. Prosecutors are elected locally for a reason. They are chosen to reflect the specific values, priorities, and standards of their communities. When the Statehouse attempts to override the explicit platform of a duly elected county prosecutor, they are not just attacking an office, they are actively attempting to disenfranchise the voters of that county.
If the state does attempt to leverage HEA 1006 to defund the Monroe County Prosecutor’s Office or appoint special prosecutors to hijack local cases, they will be stepping directly into a constitutional trap.
The office of the prosecuting attorney is not a casual administrative department; it is a constitutionally created executive office. Article 7, Section 16 of the Indiana Constitution is unambiguous: “There shall be elected in each judicial circuit by the voters thereof a prosecuting attorney.” By establishing a politically appointed board in Indianapolis to second-guess charging decisions and strip resources from a duly elected official, the legislature is not just encroaching on executive powers, they are directly attacking that constitutional guarantee to the voters.
This fundamentally blurs the separation of powers. HEA 1006 is a statute, and a statute cannot amend the Indiana Constitution. Because the law attempts to legislatively circumvent a constitutional office without actually amending the state constitution, its application remains highly legally dubious. Any attempt to enforce it against Benjamin Arrington would set up a massive, defining constitutional fight.
For Benjamin, winning the primary and becoming the Democratic nominee is not the end of the campaign; it is just the beginning of the real battle. Erika Oliphant has actively tried to avoid this fight, preferring the safety of the institutional status quo. But for Ben, avoiding the fight is a disservice to the community.
The battle for a fair, transparent, and equitable justice system deserves to be fought, even against the weight of a conservative supermajority. And if he wins, he won’t be the only prosecutor standing up to the Statehouse; he will be following the lead of Marion County Prosecutor, Ryan Mears. By refusing to back down, this campaign has the power to clear the path for other prosecutors across Indiana to follow suit.
Monroe County could be the 2nd county in Indiana to end the prosecution of simple possession. Help Benjamin Arrington get the word out. Every $10 donated will help us reach a 100 Monroe County voters!
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