That’s right, it’s time once again for the people of
Faulkner County to once again go to the polls and vote for our government
representatives. It’s a process that we should all know all too well but it shouldn’t
be taken lightly. This year the people are ask to vote for 4 of the 5 Circuit
Judge positions in the 20th Judicial District and those races haven’t
been without controversy. A Circuit Judge is a powerful position to hold in
justice system. They are the judges that interact with the public in all types
of cases and their rulings set presences that define how our laws are
interrupted. So it’s important that the people we elect to this position a) see
our laws as we see them and b) that they are above reproach. Sadly however
things just don’t always turn out that way.
One of our long time circuit judges, Judge Mike Maggio,
showed us how badly it can turn out with his racist, sexist, and homophobic
comments in an online forum. But it
doesn’t end there, the judge also admittedly gave details of a sealed adoption
case he reportedly handled and he is currently under investigation for reducing
a jury’s verdict in a case involving a contributor to his campaign for a seat
on the Arkansas Court of Appeals. Judge Maggio has resigned from the race for a
Court of Appeals seat and has had his case load in the circuit court reassigned
effectively leaving the good people of this district one judge short. You can
read more about this at the Blue Hog Report. One does have to wonder how deep this rabbit hole goes when you think about the
length of time Judge Maggio has been on the bench.
That’s right, it’s time once again for the people of
Faulkner County to once again go to the polls and vote for our government
representatives. It’s a process that we should all know all too well but it shouldn’t
be taken lightly. This year the people are ask to vote for 4 of the 5 Circuit
Judge positions in the 20th Judicial District and those races haven’t
been without controversy. A Circuit Judge is a powerful position to hold in
justice system. They are the judges that interact with the public in all types
of cases and their rulings set presences that define how our laws are
interrupted. So it’s important that the people we elect to this position a) see
our laws as we see them and b) that they are above reproach. Sadly however
things just don’t always turn out that way.
The end of Judge Maggio’s judicial career may have started with the stupid comments he made online but that kind of stupidity comes from an arrogant lack of character. A good judge needs to have the kind of integrity and responsibility that keeps them humble in their duty to uphold our laws. They are, after all, our representatives. Here are the choices before us this time around:
DIVISION 1 Candidates:
Judge Amy Brazil, current 5th division judge
Mike Murphy, Conway City Attorney
DIVISION 2 Candidates:
Troy Braswell, Deputy Prosecutor
Joe Don Winningham
DIVISION 4 Candidates:
Judge David Clark, current 4th division judge
Angela Byrd, former Deputy Prosecutor
DIVISION 5 Candidates:
H.G. Foster, current 1st division judge
Doralee Chandler
