COUNTY HIRES ASSISTANT PROSECUTOR

JACKSON -- Michael G. Deimund became Cape Girardeau County's fourth assistant prosecutor Monday, accepting a new position created by the County Commission.

Commissioners said last week that adding another assistant prosecutor would fulfill a provision that says first-class counties must have a county counselor. The person could be a local lawyer with a private practice, someone who could make as much as $50,000 a year for his services.

If the county doesn't have separate counsel, the law states, the prosecuting attorney's office must handle the load.

It was an assignment County Prosecutor Morley Swingle said he and his staff couldn't complete. Case filings in the county have more than doubled since Swingle took office in December 1982, with 1,900 last year.

"I am delighted that the County Commission has provided me with some much-needed help," he said. "I feel we'll have our noses above water again. Now we have five lawyers to send into court."

The total price tag for the new assistant plus another secretary was $41,600 annually. Deimund joins current assistant prosecutors Ian Sutherland, Kevin Zoellner and Kim Essary.

A Cape Girardeau native, Deimund, 26, graduated from Cape Central High School and went to DePauw University in Green Castle, Ind. He graduated in 1992 and then attended law school at Emory University in Atlanta.

There he was on the Law Review and completed an internship in the DeKalb County district attorney's office. He also served as a summer intern for federal judge Stephen Limbaugh in St. Louis.

He graduated in May 1995 and most recently worked for a local law firm.

"This sounded like a good chance to get courtroom experience, and I like the job of prosecuting criminals," Deimund said. "It will be a big challenge, but I'm looking forward to it."

He will begin work on Feb. 1.