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All 83 prosecuting attorneys in the state belong to the association and, as the president, Koop will act as a spokesperson, testifying in front of legislative bodies about the association's stance on issues.

Koop said he and the association are concentrating on a few big topics at the moment, many relating to state budget issues and how they trickle into the local level.

"The big thing is public safety and the desire for the Department of Corrections to start releasing prisoners, which we believe is a bad idea,"Koop said.

According to Koop, in an effort to reduce the state budget, one proposal was to release prisoners once they pass their earliest release dates. The association wants to ensure nobody is released unless he or she has gone before a parole board and been determined safe.

Koop also mentioned more people are being put in local jails rather than state prisons. "The state is trying to balance the budget on the backs of the county,"Koop said.

Koop isn't the first local prosecuting attorney to hold the title of president of the association. Harry Cook, the Antrim County prosecuting attorney for more than 20 years, was the president in the 1960s.

As one of the smaller counties, Koop thinks it is good to have a representative from Antrim as president. "A small county gets its voice heard. Sometimes it's lost in Lansing,"he remarked.

Every year the association meets at Grand Traverse Resort, but they used to come to Shanty Creek Resort. "One of my goals as president is to have them return to Shanty Creek now that they're refurbishing it,"Koop said.

The local prosecuting attorney has practiced law in Michigan since receiving his law degree from the Detroit College of Law in 1976. He worked both at private practices and as a prosecutor in Traverse City before being elected as prosecuting attorney for Antrim County in 1990.

Koop is in his seventeenth year in the position and has been elected four times, but his recent accomplishment as president of the statewide association comes at a time when a petition is out to recall Koop for writing an interdepartmental memorandum seeking a county "master plan."The petition states that Koop violated the public trust by doing this.

"The complaint is that I wrote a memo that the county's master plan can be called a master plan. I have trouble wrapping my arms around why that should be the subject of a recall,"Koop said.

Koop said he takes the recall effort seriously, but needs to continue doing his job.

"I cannot allow a recall position to hold me hostage in what I'm required to do Ð my constitutional and statutory duties,"Koop said. "If he gets his petition, the voters will deal with it.Ó

The Prosecuting Attorneys Association knew of the recall petition when they elected Koop this summer, and Koop said he hopes whatever happens with him won't reflect on the association.

The petition requires more than 2,800 signatures to get on the ballot.

Hadley Robinson can be reached at hrobinson@michigannewspapers.com or by calling 231-533-8523.