IndyStar: Can prosecutors be impeached? This Indiana lawmaker wants to try to change the laws

The scrutiny over the Marion County Prosecutor's Office continues in response to a recent spate of [] violence in Indianapolis: this time with a Republican state representative proposing giving legislators impeachment power over the locally elected office.

It's not the first hint of state intervention into this locally elected office, but it's certainly the most specific ― and would require a lengthy process of amending the state constitution.

After two July weekends of back-to-back violence with multiple people killed, including teenagers, the city's police union president Rick Snyder called on state leaders to "step in," with no further details. Then Gov. Mike Braun said he'd be open to some kind of intervention ― without saying of what sort ― if Indianapolis leaders don't "make a change," specifically pointing the finger at the prosecutor's office, led by Democrat Ryan Mears.

"We need to see a significant crackdown," Braun said last week. "Indianapolis' own justice system is not doing the job."

Now, Indianapolis state Rep. Andrew Ireland has an idea: allow state lawmakers to impeach Mears, a power the state constitution currently vests in the Indiana Supreme Court.

His key claim is that Mears doesn't do enough to keep repeat violent defenders off the streets, citing two recent examples: the case of the alleged IndyGo bus arsonist, Demarcus McCloud, who has a long rap sheet prior to the arson; and Zachary Arnold, who was charged with killing his daughter this year and previously had a violent criminal history.

"I just want somebody who will hold the violent offenders accountable, and if Ryan Mears isn’t up to that task, then we have to have tools to replace him," Ireland told WIBC's Tony Katz on July 23.

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