DOVER, Del. (Legal Newsline) - Saying he still has a job to do as Delaware's attorney general, Beau Biden announced Monday that he won't seek the U.S. Senate seat that formerly belonged to his father, Vice President Joe Biden.

Beau Biden, who recently returned home from a tour of duty in Iraq, said one of the main reasons he ran for attorney general was to help children from predators, and it's a reason he's staying attorney general.

"The idea that any child can be a victim of abuse is horrific," Biden posted on his Web site.

"The fact that it has engulfed an entire community is unspeakable. The pain and trauma suffered by the children, their parents, and the families, can't be measured. But justice can be done. And I am determined to see that it is.

"I have a job to finish. And that's what I must do."

Other attorneys general running for U.S. Senate include Kentucky's Jack Conway and Connecticut's Richard Blumenthal.

Massachusetts' Martha Coakley was recently defeated in her Senate bid by Republican Scott Brown in a special election.

Biden has been investigating Dr. Earl Bradley, who was arrested in December and charged with several counts of rape and sexual exploitation of a child.

"(M)y first responsibilities are here in Delaware. I have a duty to fulfill as attorney general - and the immediate need to focus on a (child-abuse) case of great consequence," Biden said.

"And that is what I must do. Therefore I cannot and will not run for the United States Senate in 2010. I will run for reelection as Attorney General."

Republican state Rep. Mike Castle is viewed as the favorite to win the Senate seat.

From Legal Newsline: Reach John O'Brien at jobrienwv@gmail.com.