• About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Pickem Terms and Conditions
Wednesday, July 2, 2025
The Platte County Landmark Newspaper
  • Home
  • Local News
  • Opinion
  • Landmark Pickem!
    • Weekly Pickem Updates
    • Results by Week
    • The Leaderboard
    • Pickem Rules and Help
  • Landmark Live!
  • Looking Backward
  • es_MXSpanish
  • Home
  • Local News
  • Opinion
  • Landmark Pickem!
    • Weekly Pickem Updates
    • Results by Week
    • The Leaderboard
    • Pickem Rules and Help
  • Landmark Live!
  • Looking Backward
  • es_MXSpanish
No Result
View All Result
The Platte County Landmark Newspaper
No Result
View All Result

New assistant prosecutor on the job in Platte County

Stacy Wiedmaierk by Stacy Wiedmaierk
February 18, 2007
in Platte County
11
SHARES
281
VIEWS
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterShare via Email

There is a new assistant prosecuting attorney on the block in Platte County.

The office is swamped with work so another position was added to handle more than 16,000 total cases that pass through it every year.

RelatedNews

Three local judges up for retention Nov. 5

Summer concerts set on courthouse lawn

Free summer concerts begin June 7 at Zona Rosa

“We’ve been requesting an additional prosecutor to be placed in the county’s budget for several years,” said Eric Zahnd, prosecuting attorney. “The commissioners were able to add a spot, so we started the search. We interviewed six candidates but one stood out.”

Little did Zahnd know he already possessed Jaclyn Taylor’s resume before he began the search. Taylor, 26, had sent her resume to the county office but was told no positions were available at the time. Taylor had already graduated with honors from Northwest Missouri State University, obtaining her Bachelor of Arts Degree in industrial psychology. She stayed at Northwest for one more year to work towards her Masters Degree in business administration.

Taylor said unlike many lawyers, she did not dream of this profession as a small child.

“You know, some kids say ‘I will be a lawyer’ when they’re toddlers, but it wasn’t like that for me,” Taylor said. “It was always a profession on my radar and in the back of my mind, though. When I began my master’s program, I knew for the first time that law school was ahead.”

Taylor was accepted to the University of Missouri Kansas City (UMKC) and graduated in the top of her class. During her studies, she interned in the Jackson County Prosecutors Office.

“The experience I had in Jackson County was amazing and this was the first time I made the decision to be a prosecuting attorney,” she said. “That job solidified what I had been considering.”

Taylor was hired by Zahnd as the eighth full time assistant prosecuting attorney for Platte County. Zahnd said although Taylor is getting her feet wet and will soon handle felony cases from start to finish, she is starting at what he calls “a training ground.”

“She will primarily handle the child support docket, that will be her main focus starting out,” said Zahnd. “We commonly start all our new lawyers in this area because it’s a good way to learn the ropes. She will move up from here to DWI or misdemeanor cases. By the end of this year, I hope to see her do two jury trials.”

Zahnd said the prosecutor’s office handles between six to twelve jury trials each year, since many citizens plead guilty to lesser charges where a jury is unnecessary.

Taylor is still getting settled in her cubicle–as of Thursday she had been on the job just two days. Counting Zahnd and his top assistant, there are 10 prosecuting attorneys in Platte County’s Courthouse, and only three of them have an office.

Zahnd said his staff has been outgrowing its working quarters for some time and the county commission is beginning to think about the possibility of expanding in the future. He said Platte County is growing at such a fast rate that adding another court division has also been discussed.

Taylor said she is looking forward to several things, including moving closer to work, since she commutes from the Plaza area in Kansas City.

“I’m at the beginning of the learning process right now and there are so many different situations to get used to,” she said. “I’m anxiously awaiting my first case and I’m thankful there is always someone around who has more experience so I can ask them questions.”

Tags: eric zahndplatte county
Stacy Wiedmaierk

Stacy Wiedmaierk

Related Posts

45 Years Ago–July 4, 1980

by Ivan Foley
July 2, 2025
0

Platte County Fair schedule set: carnival, queen contest and other events are planned. Grandstand show each evening, Pony Express, demolition derby, and more activities are planned at the Platte County Fairgrounds in Tracy. The Platte County Sheriff’s Department has received...

30 Years Ago–July 6, 1995

by Ivan Foley
July 2, 2025
0

Laurie Everett, newscaster for KMBC-TV Channel 9 of Kansas City, served as celebrity emcee of the Zed Martin Day parade on Saturday in Platte City. She was assisted in announcing the entries by Platte City residents Bill Brown and Jim...

15 Years Ago–July 7, 2010

by Ivan Foley
July 2, 2025
0

Interstate 29 travelers in Platte County may notice a slower pace of traffic and increased police patrols around mid-day Thursday. President Barack Obama will be in Platte County on Thursday. The president is scheduled to arrive at KCI aboard Air...

Power outage

Electric bills, Luke Duke slide and such

by Guy Speckman
July 2, 2025
0

I don't like pointing out when I'm right, but a study was recently reported on by the New York Times that in nearly every case studied the cost of data centers was partially eaten by “regular” consumers or utilities that...

Next Post

Parkville NID okayed over owner objection

Popular News

  • Golf course at Creekside

    Nine-hole golf course planned at Creekside

    73 shares
    Share 29 Tweet 18
  • Chick-fil-A coming to Metro North Crossing

    31 shares
    Share 12 Tweet 8
  • Construction worker fatally struck by vehicle on Barry Road

    51 shares
    Share 20 Tweet 13
  • Free food, drink ready for July 4th celebration

    17 shares
    Share 7 Tweet 4
  • Buffy Smith named chief of staff for Sam Graves

    18 shares
    Share 7 Tweet 5
  • About Us
  • Advertise
  • Contact Us
  • Privacy Policy
  • Pickem Terms and Conditions
Call us at 816-858-0363

Copyright © 2019-2020 The Platte County Landmark Newspaper - All Rights Reserved

No Result
View All Result
  • Subscribe Online
  • Home
  • Local News
  • Opinion
  • Landmark Pickem
    • Results by Week
    • The Leaderboard
    • Pickem Rules and Help
  • Landmark Live!
  • Looking Backward
  • es_MXSpanish

Copyright © 2019-2020 The Platte County Landmark Newspaper - All Rights Reserved