Three Democrats Debate Jail Capacity, Homelessness, Diversion Before March 3 Primary

Voters heading into the March 3 Democratic primary will effectively choose Buncombe County’s next district attorney, with early voting open Feb. 12–28 and the winner set to appear alone on the November ballot. The race has focused on an immediate overcrowding problem at the county detention center and sharply different plans for whether to pursue new jail capacity.

Candidates spoke at two recent local forums: a Jan. 28 meeting hosted by the Asheville chapter of the Democratic Socialists of America at the East Asheville Public Library and a Feb. 13 forum convened by the Council of Independent Business Owners. Both events put violent crime, homelessness, court backlogs, relationships with law enforcement, and jail capacity on the table while underscoring shared priorities and distinct approaches.

Courtney Booth, a public defender with more than 20 years as an assistant public defender in Buncombe County and a 2022 primary challenger who lost by 101 votes, said she would not press county commissioners for more jail space. When asked whether she would advocate for additional capacity she answered, “absolutely not.” She told voters, “Most of these people are pretrial confinement. We have a presumption of innocence until proven guilty. People should not sit in jail for months waiting for their day in court. We can do better.” Booth has campaigned on prosecuting, moving and diverting cases instead of expanding jail capacity and has said, “We’ve never had a DA that matches our ideals here in Buncombe County,” adding, “The reason I wanted to run is that we can do something different.”

Katie Kurdys, the only candidate currently working inside the DA’s Office as a senior assistant prosecuting high-level violent and gun crimes, framed a new jail as a future-oriented investment. She said she would “advocate for funds to build a new jail - not to make more space to incarcerate more people now, but recognizing the community can grow.” Kurdys’ prosecutorial experience and role advising law enforcement were cited by the current DA as among the qualifications that make her a serious contender.

Martin Moore, an attorney with more than a decade of civil, criminal and appellate experience who began his career in the Public Defender’s Office and serves on the Buncombe County Board of Commissioners, warned against immediate tax-backed construction. “I can’t think of anything less that I want to explain to people than raising your taxes to build a new jail right now, especially in the wake of Helene. It’s not an immediate fix; it would cost over 120 million dollars, that’s a heavy lift, and would not be built in a reasonable amount of time to address the immediate problem we have, which is our jail is full today. I think the primary thing I would want to do before reaching that option is as DA is do my job effectively and efficiently so that we don’t have to deal with that.”

Across forums the three candidates agreed on prioritizing violent crimes for prosecution, clearing the court backlog, reducing the pretrial population, adding a mental-health court to existing diversion programs, and supporting LGBTQ rights, and they repeatedly said the county “can’t prosecute its way out of homelessness.” Candidates were also asked at the Feb. 13 forum whether they would work with Immigration and Customs Enforcement if assistance were requested; coverage noted the question and that each candidate responded, but the specific answers were not included in available accounts.

Current District Attorney Todd Williams, who announced in December that he will not seek a fourth term, wrote that he is “heartened that two qualified candidates have filed to run for this challenging position: Buncombe County prosecutor Katie Kurdys, and Buncombe County Commissioner Martin Moore,” and urged primary voters to choose a candidate who will strengthen the fall ticket. Early voting locations are listed on the county website for voters using the Feb. 12–28 window.