MACON, Ga. — Each day this week, we're introducing you to a candidate in the Macon-Bibb County mayoral race. Five candidates are competing for Mayor Robert Reichert's seat. He's term-limited after serving since 2008.
Lester Miller was one of the first candidates to throw his name into the race.
He's a familiar face in Macon. He played baseball at Southwest High School and got his bachelor's and law degree at Mercer University.
He's now a sole practitioner at his Macon law firm downtown. He's served on the Bibb County Board of Education for the past seven years and was board president three of the last four.
Miller said two of his priorities are lowering the crime rate and improving the staffing numbers for public safety workers. He promises to improve that in a campaign ad.
"When I'm mayor, I won't lay one more brick until public safety is fixed," he said in the ad.
He said a solution is to implement his Justice Works program. The voluntary program would allow felons, convicted of non-violent crimes, to work jobs while incarcerated.
"While they're in jail, they would actually pay to live there each week, pay for their transportation to and from the job and the child support -- if they have children to take care of -- would be taken care of by their income tax or the check that they're earning there," Miller said.
In turn, he said this would help fight homelessness. When people get out of jail, they've already worked a job for at least a year, and they have a check stub to help find them a place to live.
Miller said this program could also get more deputies patrolling the streets.
"...You can actually have eight to 10 officers that are out there working, because these inmates will be going to and from work every day. That frees up about 14, 15 police officers that we're already paying," Miller said.
Miller has received the endorsement of the Fraternal Order of Police, the Macon-Bibb Firefighters Association and the Police Benevolent Association of Georgia.
Miller said if the county focuses on public safety, it could also help with commercial blight and bringing business back to Macon -- another one of his priorities.
"When businesses want to come here, they look at the housing around there. They look at the amount of income a person has, but they also look at the crime rate," Miller said in a debate hosted by Georgia Women, the Links Incorporated and League of Women Voters of Macon on May 11.
Other issues he's addressing in his campaign are balancing the budget, lowering taxes and improving schools.
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