The Wahkiakum County Eagle - Established as The Skamokawa Eagle in 1891

Depending on your point-of-view, we are faced with another important public official running unopposed for the forthcoming November election in Wahkiakum County. Public records indicate the incumbent District Court Judge has been in public service for 22-years! This would appear to indicate: 1) voter’s commitment and acceptance of the public service-vote of confidence; 2) another example of once-in-office, the person stays in office and or 3; a combination of once-in-office and complete ignorance of a candidate’s actions and capabilities and the person gets continually voted-in; he is the only candidate on the ballot. With a candidate having no opposition on a ballot, there is no discussion of a person’s performance. I ask readers what they would want in a District Court Judge. What professional abilities above a degree, ethical standards, honorable service, people-skills, etc would you want in our public official, our District Court Judge?

Finding and having a person step-up and declare his/her candidacy as a write-in for Wahkiakum District Court Judge and educate us is highly impossible for the up-coming election. In the likely event a write-in candidate does not step forward to challenge the incumbent District Court Judge, I will suggest a few things to help educate us and these include: 1) letters or articles from the public pointing out past distinctive service-perhaps there will be letters/articles that find fault; 2) a public forum held by the incumbent and to be followed with a written summary in his own words as to the importance of the position, accomplishments, future needs of the office, and possibly some personal comments on the incidence of crime and appropriate punishment in our local community, our county. What preventive measures can be initiated by the District Court Judge?

For myself, I would have some additional requests of the District Court Judge, but these may or may not happen. At times I use the cliché of trying to make my grand-children “street smart”; avoid the mistakes I have made in life. Would our local high school students like to learn more about being a lawyer in a small or large community and the prospects of becoming a judge? I think we could all become more “street smart” about the law, lawyers and judges. And I would like to debate the incumbent as to a relationship of being a District Court Judge and lawyer in the community. How do these two positions, one publicly elected and the other private enterprise, influence each other and help build a better judicial system?

Finally, there will always be incumbent public office holders that run unopposed and are our public servants and have our total support.

Dennis T. Gordon

Puget Island