Ada County gets first new county prosecutor in 40 years, Bennetts is first woman to hold post

Ada County has a new county prosecutor after nearly 40 years, and it’s the first woman ever to hold the position. County commissioners voted unanimously yesterday to appoint Jan Bennetts, a 20-year veteran deputy county prosecutor and longtime Prosecutor Greg Bower’ chief of staff for the past two years, as the new prosecutor. According to a county news release, Bennetts’ name was the only one submitted by the Ada County Republican Central Committee as a nominee to succeed Bower. County Commission Chairman Dave Case said that was “really a testament to her accomplishments, as well as who she is as a person.” You can read the full announcement here .

Bennetts, a University of Idaho graduate who holds a law degree from Willamette University College of Law, clerked for the 9 ^th Circuit Court of Appeals before joining the prosecutor’s office. She was instrumental in creating the FACES Family Justice Center in 2006 to help victims of child abuse, sexual assault and domestic violence. Bennetts said, “I can’t think of anything I’d rather do than serve this community and continue to work to protect our citizens every day, and that’s exactly what I plan to do.”