HARRISBURG, Pa. (WHTM) -
Experience and independence -- those were the two words uttered dozens of times throughout Monday's first and only debate between the two candidates for state attorney general, Dave Freed and Kathleen Kane.
Freed, the Republican nominee, spent the hour at Widener University School of Law touting his 15 years of experience as a prosecutor -- the last seven as Cumberland County district attorney. He said his immediate goal in office would be to crack down on cyber crime, synthetic drugs and establish a special victims unit to streamline referrals.
Kane, a Democrat from Scranton, said she will bring a fresh face to a position that's been held by Republican men for the last three decades. She wants to cut down on government corruption and said she will be "an independent watchdog" for citizens of the Commonwealth.
Both candidates said they will probe into why it took three years for the current attorney general's office to bring charges against former Penn State football coach Jerry Sandusky.
"As a child abuse prosecutor, I have never used a grand jury. It takes too long," Kane said. "It is your duty as a prosecutor to get the pedophile off the streets."
Kane accused Freed of being "hand-picked" by Governor Tom Corbett; saying nothing will be investigated if Freed is elected. Freed said he "missed the phone call" from Corbett allegedly hand-picking him, and said an investigation is not out of the realm of possibility -- but first he will need to review the timeline.
"I don't think either of us can make a judgement until we're sworn into that grand jury, read all the transcripts, talk to all the investigators, read all the report," Freed said. "Then we can do a review about what's going on with the case."
When asked point-blank about future political aspirations, both candidates also vowed not to run for any other political office, including governor, during their term as Pennsylvania's "top cop."
