Published: October 26, 2007 01:49 pm      

Judges' candidates field questions

The two candidates for Goshen City Court Judge fielded numerous questions Thursday evening at the Goshen Chamber of Commerce as part of the 2007 Judge Candidates Forum.

Republican candidate Gretchen Hess Lund was joined by Democratic candidate Joseph L. Lehman in discussing their campaigns and highlighting their goals for the City Court Judge office if elected this November.

“I felt I was qualified for this position not only on my expertise, but also on my energy,” said Lund, who has served as a Deputy Prosecuting Attorney for the Elkhart County Prosecutor’s Office since May of 2006.

Lehman also has a strong history in Goshen, having graduated from Goshen Middle School, High School and Goshen College and spending 16 of his 24 years as an attorney in the Goshen area.

When asked what kind of changes each candidate would make as Judge of Goshen City Court, Lund indicated that increasing efficiency was the most vital thing she would try to accomplish.

Lund also said she would like to see a new traffic court established to help pull some of the traffic court cases out of the criminal court, thus creating less waiting time on criminal cases.

“I would also like to schedule similar cases at similar times,” Lund said.

Lund said that if given the opportunity, she would like to be able to sit down with both the court staff and the attorneys and create a “game plan” for where the court should be headed in the future.

Lehman, on the other hand, focused more on the financial aspect of the court when asked what changes he would like to see made.

“Changes are sometimes good and sometimes bad, and we only want to make good changes,” Lehman said. “I would like to keep a fiscally sound court.”

Not to be outdone, Lund noted that she feels efficiency is also a major part of enhancing revenue at the court, either through the control of cost and spending, the collection of costs and fines, or simply better monitoring of the court overall.

“I think efficiency is a big part of that,” Lund said. “It is all of our tax dollars that come into City Court.”

When asked the question of what can be done to help shorten the time between when a person enters a plea and when they are sentenced, Lehman said it is integral to have a good, strong probation office to help get the reports and information needed out in a timely fashion.

For Lund, coming up with a specific time line for managing the courts was her solution to the problem.

Lund said that by having similar cases being run at similar times, operation at the courts should basically “run like clockwork.”

In his final statement, Lehman pledged to instill a minimal dress code in the court, as well as a “no cell phone” policy if elected to the position.

To close out her presentation, Lund indicated that she will strive to maintain a professional demeanor at all times in the fashion of her previous mentors in the field if elected to the position.

Lund said that all entrants to her court will be greeted with a smile, treated with respect, and receive fair and reasonable decisions — no exceptions.