Tim Nelson

“I support him whole-heartedly and there is no nervousness about his running (for County Attorney) because he is very well qualified,” says Nelson’s wife, Julie. “He is a hard worker and will continue to put in the long hours he needs to, but will take time for the kids’ school activities as well.”

On a more personal note, Tim has many qualities that make him “well-rounded,” according to his neighbors and family. “He is an avid hockey fan and goes to the Winter Olympics as often as he can,” Jen Shenfeld, a neighbor of the Nelsons for about five years, laughs.  He loves to be fit and is a marathon runner, his wife adds. “Also, something people may not see when he is working is his sense of humor as he is really quite funny.”

Three things people may not know about Tim are that he once worked in Alaska at a fish cannery; his boyhood dream was to be an astronaut; and his adopted younger brother is African American.  His strengths, according to his friends, are his fair-mindedness, perseverance, honesty, and his excellent communication skills.

“A quality that can be seen in all aspects, though, would be his integrity,” Julie says.  

    “I care about the safety of the Maricopa County just as much as I care about the safety of my own family,” Tim asserts.  

    Currently he is working on his campaign fulltime but is a private lawyer when he is not running for office. His past experience includes working for Gov. Janet Napolitano’s chief legal counsel and on the special counsel to the attorney general, to 20 years’ experience at the state and federal court levels.

“My past experience will help me if elected as I have been giving legal advice at the highest levels of government when working with the governor and attorney general,” he explains.    

Over the last couple of years, Tim had become interested in running after he became, “… More and more angry at the abuse of power and waste of taxpayers dollars.”  

When asked about his goals, Tim states that “public safety comes first,” and he hopes to achieve this by “… working to get the 40,000 outstanding felony warrants served.

“In addition, I want to set up a more direct liaison between neighborhood groups and police law enforcement,” he says. “Also, I would cut spending outside of the counsel and re-invest it on training in-house lawyers.”    

Apart from his work in the court system for both private and public sectors, Tim also coached Little League and is his street’s Block Watch Captain, demonstrating his commitment to making the neighborhoods safe again.  He also supports state and local charities and his 10-year-old daughter and 7-year-old son’s public schools.

“He was very helpful when dealing with the clustering of sexual offenders in the neighborhood,” Mary McClaren, the Nelsonsl neighbor of about seven years, recalls. “It’s time for a change and he has been a great asset to the community.”

Shenfeld agreed, adding, “Tim is very proud of his work and is a genuine person who does the right thing and does what’s right for the community.”   

For more information, visit www.TimNelson2008.com.

Editor’s note: Kirsten Fargotstein is a journalism student at Arizona State University.