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Los Angeles County will have a new chief prosecutor for the first time in more than a decade, at a time when the District Attorney's Office is grappling with increased responsibilities and shrunken budgets.

The choice is between retiring DA Steve Cooley's second-in-command, Chief Deputy District Attorney Jackie Lacey, or prosecutor Alan Jackson, assistant head deputy of the Major Crimes Division.

Both had pulled off stunning upsets in the June primary - knocking out better-known and better-funded Los Angeles City Attorney Carmen Trutanich to face each other in the Nov. 6 runoff.

Lacey appears to have a significant fundraising advantage, collecting more than $500,000 from July to September to Jackson's $180,000.

Lacey also has endorsements from state Attorney General Kamala Harris, Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa and Sheriff Lee Baca, while Jackson is backed by former Mayor Richard Riordan and former Gov. Pete Wilson.

Lacey stressed that her 16 years in the courtroom, followed by 12 years on Cooley's management team, make her far better qualified than Jackson to become the next district attorney.

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