Circuit Court seat interviews scheduled May 1
A public hearing will be held May 1 to interview applicants who wish to succeed Circuit Court Judge Charles Haston and serve on the bench the four months before an elected judge is sworn into office.
Haston, who has served as circuit judge for more than 28 years, will officially retire May 1. The administrative office of the courts said, however, Haston will be permitted to conclude some cases after his retirement date in the interest of a smooth transition from office. At the age of 66, Haston is retiring midway through his fourth elected term
The public hearing will be held at 9 a.m., May 1 in the Tennessee Room of the Holiday Inn Express in McMinnville. During the public hearing portion of the meeting, the 17-member judicial commission will consider written and oral comments concerning the applicants. The public is invited to attend and may address the board to express its approval or objection to a nominee.
Following the public hearing, the commission will present three of the applicants’ names to Governor Don Sundquist. The governor may then appoint one of the three applicants to the role of judge or request a new list of three applicants to consider.
The appointee will serve until Sept. 1, at which time the judge who is elected in the upcoming Aug. 1 general election will be installed. The winner of the upcoming election will serve out the four years left on Haston’s unexpired term. The appointee may also seek election to the office.
At present, seven potential candidates have picked up papers in the 31st Judicial District which includes Warren and Van Buren counties. Those include Bill Locke, Richard McGregor, Robert Newman, Keith Smartt, Bernard Smith, Bart Stanley and Peg Stewart. In Van Buren County, no papers have been picked up; however, the election commission there reports Spencer attorney Al Johnson has inquired about qualifying papers. The qualifying deadline to run for judge is May 16.
In the meantime, applicant questionaires for the temporary judgeship must be turned in by April 22. The questionaires are available to any attorney in good standing within the 31st Judicial District through the Administrative office of the Courts, Suite 600 Nashville City Center, 511 Union Street, Nashville, Tenn. 37219.
To hold the office of circuit judge, the candidate must hold a valid license to practice law in Tennessee, be at least 30 years of age, lived in Tennessee for at least five years and within the judicial district for at least one year.