Candidate Responses to Voter Guide Questions
Candidates were asked to provide answers to seven fundamental, nonpartisan questions for this voter guide. Candidates were asked not to make comparisons with any other candidate. Candidates were advised that their answers would be limited to 250 words per question. Each candidate's answers are reprinted verbatim here up to that word limit.
1. How have your training, professional experience, and interests prepared you to serve on the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals?
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The formal legal education I received combined with my work as a police officer, an attorney, and almost 30 years as a trial court judge equip me in a unique way to serve as a Judge on the Court of Civil Appeals.
The work of the Court of Civil Appeals involves writing opinions based on trial transcripts and briefs. This important work is much more than an academic exercise. The same is true for dispensing real justice. Reading a book or a transcript is no substitute for looking someone in the eye in a court of law, as you make a decision that will affect the rest of his life.
As a trail court judge, I have presided over literally thousands of cases, including civil, criminal and juvenile. I have put thousands of people in jail, divided assets in divorce cases, removed children from abusive parents and taken property and money from individuals by court order. All the while, I have lived in a small community with these same people day-after-day. This experience has instilled in me the important understanding of the power and authority that a judge has over the lives of individuals that appear before us and the resulting impact on our community.
I have also been a leader outside the courtroom in a wide variety of areas, including addressing the problems with domestic violence and working with law enforcement and community leaders to keep children safe, educated, and out of the legal system. |
| 2. What do you consider to be the three most important attributes of a judge? |
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1. Broad experience with the law, not just in the classroom or the library, but on the streets and in the courtroom.
2. The ability to rule based only on the law and the facts of each case, regardless of who is on trial and who is representing each party.
3. The appropriate temperament, which requires the ability to forego one’s ego and put aside any personal bias or prejudice.
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| 3. What is your judicial philosophy? |
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First and foremost, judges must be true to the rule of law. Judges and justices are required to interpret the laws as written by the legislature and to follow precedent developed in previous decisions. Judges should address only the issues that are presented to them.
Every litigant is on level playing field when they appear before me. I approach each case fairly and impartially. Once I have tried a case, I strive to apply the law correctly to the facts. That has been my approach since I was first elected as a trial court judge nearly 30 years ago, and that will not change. |
| 4. How do you define “judicial independence,” and how important is it to our judicial system? |
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Judicial independence is best described as the ability of a judge to make rulings based on the law and the facts, free of any undue pressures or influences. Indeed, judges are mandated by law to so rule. Judicial independence is of the utmost importance in order to maintain the system of checks and balances between the three separate but co- equal branches of government that was created by our founding fathers. It is of paramount importance that judges be free from even the perception of any outside influences. Unfortunately, campaigns for judicial office put pressure on candidates to take positions and pledge allegiances to various special interests. I have never bowed to such pressure and never will. |
| 5. What is the greatest area of need in the Alabama civil justice system, and how should the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals respond, if at all? |
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An area of serious concern lies specifically within the operations of the Court of Civil Appeals. Although the case disposition rate of the Court of Civil Appeals called "throughput" is very good, the quality of those decisions is problematic. Too many of them are issued as "Affirmed, no opinion". Such orders do not provide the rationale for the decision and therefore leave trial judges and lawyers with little understanding of the legal reasoning for the orders.
Another area of concern in the Alabama civil justice system, in my opinion, is the often prohibitive cost and the unacceptable delay in accessing the courts. This problem applies to both civil and criminal cases. Citizens should be able to address grievances in our courts of law in a timely and expeditious manner. They should be able to get a case to court and receive a ruling within a reasonable period of time. The Judicial Canons of Ethics encourage judges to be involved in efforts to improve the administration of justice. Our current chief justice, the Honorable Sue Bell Cobb, has commissioned a task force on access to justice issues. This group, composed of lawyers, judges and citizens should recommend meaningful measures that, after careful study and review, can be adopted by Supreme Court rule and possibly by legislation. |
| 6. What part, if any, should public opinion play in the decision of a judge? |
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None. A judge in trial should not watch the TV news or read the newspaper coverage pertaining to a pending case. It is the mandate of a judge to rule based only on the law and the merits of the case and to follow legal precedent. |
| 7. In a case before the Court, how should a judge handle a conflict between his/her personal beliefs and the law? |
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If a judge can’t put on the robe and remove his or her bias, he or she needs to recuse. Law school training teaches the ability to analyze issues with objectivity and to appropriately filter personal opinions. The mandate of a judge is to follow legal precedent and uphold laws established by the legislative branch of government and then to make rulings based only in accordance with the facts and the law and not based on personal opinions, agendas, or biases. The danger of interjecting personal beliefs is that the law could be constantly subjected to change based on the varying beliefs of each judge instead of being based on the law. That is not the judicial system envisioned by our founders. |
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