Bruce Isaacks won't be Denton County's district attorney after Jan. 1, but he still plans to be at the courthouse every day.

Mr. Isaacks, 51, who has been the Denton County criminal district attorney for 16 years, is opening a criminal law practice in Denton. He'll be sitting on the other side of the courtroom from some of the prosecutors who have been his employees.

People on trial have a constitutional right to representation, he said. He won't have a problem making sure their rights aren't violated.

Still, he loved being district attorney, he said.

"I'll be making a lot more money, but I won't feel as good about what I do," he said.

Mr. Isaacks said he is leaving the district attorney's office a better place. The most important areas that he improved, he said, involve children.

During his tenure, he started the Children's Advocacy Center for Denton County, developed a tough "no-drop" policy on family violence perpetrators and put strong resources into prosecuting cases involving Child Protective Services.

The Children's Advocacy Center – one of several in Texas – is a central, freestanding, child-friendly place where someone trained in interviewing children can question young victims. A child only has to tell the story once, with everyone who needs to hear it listening and watching through one-way glass in another room.

When Jane Graham, who was victims' assistant to Mr. Isaacks at the time, came to him with the idea of a separate facility for young victims of sexual or physical abuse, he didn't think it would work, he said.

"At that time there were only five or six of them in the state," he said. "Jane talked me into going to see one.

"After I saw the way it worked, I was convinced. It's absolutely the best thing I've ever done."

The center now is a separate corporation but still under the wing of the district attorney, and Ms. Graham is executive director.

Mr. Isaacks lost to Paul Johnson, one of his former employees, who defeated him in the Republican primary in March. Mr. Isaacks said he believes the media's handling of his son's arrests and his wife's administration of county money cost him votes.

Mr. Isaacks said he believes his son's arrests on charges involving weapons and injury to a child were sensationalized. And he criticized reports that his wife, District Judge Vicki Isaacks, cost the county hundreds of thousands of dollars by hiring attorneys for children in divorce cases. The families in the cases paid most of the money back to the county, he said.

During the race, Mr. Johnson said Mr. Isaacks made plea bargains with some who made campaign contributions. He also said Mr. Isaacks, who was first elected in 1990, had entered his "entitlement phase" and had become too comfortable.

But many who worked under Mr. Isaacks remain loyal, pointing to successful programs he initiated.

Lee Ann Breading served as first assistant district attorney for most of Mr. Isaacks' 16 years. Ms. Breading met Mr. Isaacks when she was a young, new lawyer in the Dallas County district attorney's office.

Ms. Breading has served on the Children's Advocacy Center board since 1998.

"This is something that has left a lasting effect on victims of those offenses of severe physical abuse and sexual assault," she said. "It's still a horrible event. But it not only helps those kids who turn out to be better citizens, but it helps us try those cases. I understand that some dedicated, experienced prosecutors are going there and will keep on the tradition."

Mr. Isaacks instituted the no-drop policy in family violence cases, and his office helped train police officers in ways to strengthen their cases, he said.

"After the hitting stopped, the woman often wouldn't want her husband to go to jail," Mr. Isaacks said. "She would try to drop the charges, and sometimes she would testify that no violence occurred and she had no idea why the police showed up that night."

Mr. Isaacks worked with local corporations to buy 100 simple cameras that he then passed out to county law enforcement agencies.

His office trained police officers to photograph the injuries and any other evidence at the crime scene. He required that agencies keep 911 tapes so the photographs and sounds of women screaming for help could rebut their denials.

"Before that, a woman would say, 'I don't know why they took my husband to jail. He didn't hit me. I never said he did.' And jurors would look at us like, 'Why are we here?' "

Mr. Isaacks worked with Denton County Friends of the Family to develop a 27-week batterers' intervention program that he believes works.

The children, he said, lose the most in those situations, and they are more likely to commit crimes as juveniles and adults.

Mr. Isaacks found federal grants to pay for a narcotics prosecutor and an intake officer. He also brought on board a strong prosecutor to handle DWI cases. He believes the programs have strengthened prosecutions.

In his tenure, Mr. Isaacks' hot-check division collected $17.2 million and returned it to the merchants who lost the money, he said.

"Stores build hot-check losses into their charges – your grocery bill. It affects everyone in higher prices," he said.

Dennis Cox headed the hot-check division for 16 years. He said Mr. Isaacks is a detail-oriented boss who nevertheless allows employees the freedom to learn from their mistakes.

"He gave us the responsibility and let us do our jobs," Mr. Cox said. "As an individual, he's very caring. He's very thoughtful. He believes in personal responsibility, and he believes in treating everybody fair."

Mr. Cox and Ms. Breading are among 25 employees whom the new district attorney notified in November will not retain their jobs. Mr. Cox said it was difficult for Mr. Isaacks to post the jobs for applications that had belonged to his employees. But he did it, Mr. Cox said.

"And he told us, 'I expect you to keep doing your jobs as long as you are part of this office.' "

E-mail dfielder@dentonrc.com