Politicians talk up a good game, especially those in law enforcement. And nobody is better at that than State Attorney John Tanner, the Bible-thumping zealot who prayed some 50 times with serial killer Ted Bundy on Death Row. What better time than the present to grab headlines again in the wake of a horrific homicide -- the brutal stabbing-murder last month of Tomoka Corrections officer Donna Fitzgerald at the hands of twice-convicted rapist and inmate Enoch Hall. Now that he's put the Harry Shorstein episode behind him, Tanner is back out on the courthouse steps, doing what he does best -- holding court for the media. First Tanner holds a press conference for the media television cameras and his blessed newspaper, the Daytona Beach News-Journal, where he typically gets favorable coverage, to declare he's seeking the death penalty. Then he grandstands in court,personally reading aloud the charges against Hall and pleading with Circuit Judge J. David Walsh to speed the wheels of justice in this case. The Mighty Metro wrote: "State Attorney John Tanner, who led the prosecution at this morning’s hearing, asked the judge that Hall be tried in six months. Tanner’s aim is a quick conviction and a death sentence for Hall. 'We hope the results of this trial will act as a deterrent,' to other inmates serving life sentences who would harm corrections officers, Tanner said. Walsh did not set a trial date, but did schedule a pretrial hearing for Sept. 23." If Tanner truly wants justice for the family of Donna Fitzgerald, then he would be wise to take his time doing the discovery needed to make this an open and shut case. Most high profile crimes, especially capital murder cases, take one to two years to go to trial. And there is a good reason for that: Reversals by appeals courts because of errors during a trial. Hey, Mr. Tanner, remember Roy Lee McDuffie, the double murderer in the Dollar General store case? How about Virginia Larzelere, who had her Edgewater dentist-husband killed for the life insurance money? They were on Death Row at one point. Mr. Tanner should understand better than anyone else that there can be no rush to judgment. The stakes are too high this time around. Even if Hall is found guilty by a jury and a death sentence is recommended, that doesn't mean the judge won't ignore it. After all, Walsh did just that recently, sentencing a killer to life instead of death, even though the jury recommended the ultimate punshment by an 8-4 vote. And let's face it. Even if Hall is convicted and given free lodging on Florida's Death Row, it's not like he'd be put to death any time soon. There are 15 killers from Volusia and one from Flagler, as far back as 1980, waiting there to meet their Maker. And there are many others from across the Sunshine State waiting as well. Perhaps Tanner has forgotten these other local heinous killers awaiting execution (sentencing dates follow names): Kenneth Quince, 1980; Ted Herring, 1982; Roy Swafford, 1985; Roger Cherry, 1987; Peter Ventura, 1988; Louis Gaskin (Flagler), 1990; Kosta Fotopoulos, 1990; Anthony Farina, 1992; James Hunter, 1993; Bobby Raleigh, 1996; Richard England, 2004; Troy Victorino, 2006; Jerone Hunter, 2006; Ray Jackson, 2007. Bobby Raleigh is a memorable case for Tanner. Raleigh and Domingo Figueroa were convicted of first-degree murder in the shooting deaths of two rival drug dealers. Raleigh was sentenced to death while Tanner's client, Figueroa, got life. Why was Tanner representing a drug-dealing killer? Well, he was kicked out of office for one term a decade ago when he went on one of his Christian crusades, demanding the receipts from video stores of local citizens who rented adult movies. And the Florida Supreme Court admonished Tanner for using Biblical verses during the 1992 penalty phase for Anthony Farina, who along with his brother, Jeffrey, herded employees into a cooler at the Taco Bell in Daytona Beach that resulted in one teen's death and the near killings of two others during a robbery. Fast forward to this decade just days before the second anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks: Mr. Tanner tried to board a plane at Daytona International Airport with guns and ammo in his carry-on bags. He claimed he didn't know any better and paid a $2,500 fine. Tanner had mulled a run for Congress before that episode. Tanner's history of personal debacle and soul-saving go back a ways further. He was in his first term as state attorney when he made it his personal mission to save the soul of Bundy, the nation's most notorious serial killer. This is the same John Tanner who was indicted at age 25 on a manslaughter charge, along with two others in a liffeuard hazing inicident that led to the drowning of a recruit. The criminal charge was later dismissed. And it was vintage John Tanner, Old Testament-style, who was preaching eye-for-an-eye vengeance against female serial killer Aileen Wuornos, when she was executed earlier this decade. And while Tanner takes every opportunity to brag that he personally prosecuted Wuornos, it was his then-assistant, Dave Damore, who did most of the work. Then came Harry Shorstein, the Duval County prosecutor appointed by the governor to investigate Tanner's own investigation of the Flagler County Jail after his daughter, Lisa Tanner, was arrested in 2005, and strapped into a chair during a disorderly conduct charge later dismissed. Tanner hired the best local attorney with the expertise on public records laws to keep Shorstein from getting a judge to allow a potentially damaging grand jury report about his office from being released to the public. That attorney was Jon Kaney, the husband of News-Journal Publisher Georgia Kaney and a principal in the law firm of Cobb and Cole. He became Tanner's mouthpiece in court and in the Mighty Metro's coverage. Of course, the nearly $200,000 bill charged by Kaney's law firm was absorbed by the taxpayers, even though Tanner could hve used very capable in-house attorneys to fight his battle for him. So welcome back to the public spotlight you so much crave, Mr. John Tanner. Go get 'em counselor and God bless you.