2.b Welch cover letterHEBERT AND WELCH, P.A.
ATTORNEYS AT LAW
P.O. Box 188
FOREST LAKE, MN 55025
Phone: (651)464-3397
Fax: (651)464-8664
MICHAEL A. WELCH
mike@,mikewelchlaw.com
September 22, 2022
Ken Cammilleri
City Administrator
City of Scandia
14757 209th Street North
Scandia, MN 55073
lVED
SEP 2 2 2a2ZZ
CITY OF SCANDIA
KELLIE L. WELCH
Legal Assistant
kellie@mikewelchlaw.com
RE: Submission of Hebert & Welch, P.A., in response to the City of Scandia's
Request for Qualifications and Proposals for Legal Services
Dear Mr. Cammilleri, Mayor, and Council:
Attached is my submission of qualifications and proposal for legal services, specifically
pertaining to the position of prosecuting attorney. The purpose of this correspondence is
to summarize what may or may not be apparent from the attached application.
I was admitted to practice law in the State of Minnesota October 31, 1981 and since
February 1, 1983 1 have been the prosecuting attorney for the City of Forest Lake.
When I started prosecuting for the City of Forest Lake there were six police offi'--ers and
the prosecution work represented approximately 20% of my work load. There are now
twenty seven full time officers. The rest of my practice was devoted to criminal defense
work in other jurisdictions and general civil litigation, including family law. My courtroom
experience is substantial and varied. I have tried child custody cases, civil jury trials,
including wrongful death, and many court and jury criminal trials, including felony cases.
I began prosecuting criminal and traffic offenses for the City of Scandia, in Washington
County, when it became incorporated in 2007. 1 have served as their prosecuting
attorney continuously since that time. I have been handling the prosecution of ordinance
violations since 1983.
I am truly a solo practitioner. Our firm had as many as seven attorneys in the 1 c90s, but
when David Hebert retired in 2018, 1 became the Ione remaining attorney. On February
1, 2018, 1 accepted a part time position with the law firm of Johnson and Turner
handling the criminal prosecution for the following five cities in Washington County:
Hugo, Grant, Lakeland, Marine on the Saint Croix, and Lake Elmo (we no longer
represent Grant or Lake Elmo). This allowed me to discontinue my other areas of
practice and focus exclusively on municipal prosecution. I have not taken on any private
clients in over four years. I still retain my private practice, but my only clients are the
City of Forest Lake and the City of Scandia. Because I no longer have private clients to
meet with, I was able to close my office and I run my private practice out of my home in
Forest Lake. We are fully functional and are fully connected to the Department of Public
Safety, the Bureau of Criminal Apprehension, and to the court with Odyssey, MNCIS,
and eCharging. As a result, I have been able to reduce my overhead even though most
law firms are dealing with ever increasing overhead. As a result, I have not increased
my billing rate for prosecution services for Forest Lake or Scandia since 2007.
This proposal may be different than any other proposals that you receive. I believe that I
am by far the most experienced municipal prosecutor in Washington County. I have
watched other firms have new attorneys "cut their teeth" doing prosecution work, only to
have the work turned over to the next newly hired associate. I have watched other firms
have several attorneys juggle the prosecution work for each jurisdiction. I believe that
the quality and the consistency of the service I provide is unmatched in Washington
County. If you or law enforcement have a question about a particular case or about the
philosophy of the prosecution, you will know who to reach and where to reach me.
Because my office is in my home, I can be reached virtually twenty four hours a day,
seven days a week. I have the ability to answer questions, draft complaints, and
process holds over the weekend, when other prosecutors may not be available.
I believe the fact that I have been the prosecutor for the City of Forest Lake for over
thirty nine years is the truest measure of the quality of my service. Within the other cities
for whom I prosecute, I work closely with the Washington County Sheriff's Department,
their staff, and the Minnesota State Patrol. I would encourage you to speak with anyone
from the Forest Lake Police Department, Washington County Sheriff's Department,
and/or Minnesota State Patrol for feedback on the quality of my service. If you want a
big law firm with many prosecutors, then I am not the right prosecuting attorney for your
city. If you want one person that you know you can reach and count on to aggressively
and effectively prosecute criminal offenses in your jurisdiction, then I believe that I am
the right person for the job.
Very Truly Yours,
HEBERT AND WELCH, P.A.
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Michael A. Welch
MAW/klw