Frank Severino faces some of the darkest elements of human nature in his job. As an assistant Polk County attorney, he works in the adult criminal division, mostly on cases of sexual assault and crimes against children.

“Frequently people come to me and say, ‘How can you do that,'” he said. “As a father, it’s difficult to do, but I feel like I have to give something back. How can you not do it, not protect a child?”

Severino is a Des Moines native, married with two children. He received his undergraduate degree in marketing from Iowa State University in 1989. He then attended Drake University Law School, from which he graduated in 1991.

While in law school, Severino completed a judicial clerkship with a Polk County district judge. The next year, he had a prosecutor’s internship with the Polk County attorney’s office, which became a permanent position. Some notable cases Severino has worked on recently were prosecuting Douglas Kinney, who drove his SUV through Prairie Meadows Racetrack and Casino; Chris Martin, a motivational speaker who killed his son; and David Petithory, a methamphetamine user whose baby drowned because he fell asleep while giving the child a bath.

Petithory’s case is just example of a troubling trend, Severino said, one he has watched grow over the past decade.

“I think that we’re going to see more problems in our community directly related to the abuse of meth, and an increase in the amount of crime,” he said. “It’s one of my biggest fears. I hope the trend doesn’t continue, but there don’t seem to be signs of it stopping.”

Severino says he gets through painful cases by changing his point of view.

“There have been a lot of homicides, abuse cases, broken bones…it’s been tough,” he said. “You have to take your focus away from the pain you know the victim is feeling and focus on the person who has been accused of wrongdoing. You focus on holding them responsible for their actions and protecting the victim the best you can from any future harm. That makes it easier to cope.”