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Pasco Names Steinsnyder County Attorney

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By Julia Ferrante, The Tampa Tribune

Published: November 6, 2007

DADE CITY - In an effort to reach a consensus, Pasco County commissioners voted 5-0 this morning to name Jeffrey Steinsnyder the new county attorney.

Commissioner Michael Cox, who interviewed the three remaining finalists Monday and last week, pushed Steinsnyder, a former assistant county attorney in Manatee in private practice, as a compromise candidate.

Chief Assistant County Attorney Barbara Wilhite had been the frontrunner two weeks ago, with an apparent three votes on the five-member commission. Cox and Commissioner Jack Mariano have been opposed to Wilhite, saying they do not like her sometimes-confrontational management style.

Commissioner Pat Mulieri tried to pre-empt Cox, moving to appoint Wilhite at the start of the discussion, but the motion died for lack of a second.

Commissioner Ted Schrader supported Steinsnyder early on as a candidate with extensive government experience in a county with similar demographics to Pasco. In private practice, Steinsnyder has represented the school board in Manatee on concurrency issues, a topic that tops Pasco's agenda now.

County Attorney Robert Sumner plans to retire Dec. 31.

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