Judicial nominating commission sets date for Douglas County District judge interviews; here are the nominees

The public will have the opportunity soon to hear from local attorneys who have applied to serve as judges in Douglas County District Court.

The nominating commission will convene starting at 9 a.m. Wednesday, Aug. 31, and interviews will be open to the public starting at 9:30 a.m. at the Douglas County Judicial and Law Enforcement Center, 111 E. 11th St.

There will be two spots available on the bench: one from which Judge Kay Huff has retired, and another that is a new division the Legislature has decided to fund.

Nominees, according to a news release Wednesday from the Kansas Judicial Branch, are:

• Alice Craig, Baldwin City, special counsel, Hall & Evans, LLC
• Nicholas David, Lawrence, attorney, The David Law Office, LLC
• Carl Folsom, III, Lawrence, assistant federal public defender
• Jessica Glendening, Lawrence, deputy defender, 3rd Judicial District Public Defender’s Office
• Blake Glover, Baldwin City, judge pro tem, 7th Judicial District
• Tonda Hill, Lawrence, assistant district attorney, Wyandotte County
• Paul Klepper, Lawrence, judge pro tem, 7th Judicial District
• Jonathon Noble, Lawrence, chief public defender, Northeast Kansas Conflicts Public Defender Office
• Catherine Theisen, Lawrence, attorney, Barber Emerson, L.C.

The order of interviews will be announced once the full schedule is set. Anyone who needs accommodation should reach out to the judicial branch’s ADA coordinator at ADA@kscourts.org, 785-296-2256, or TTY at 711.

The Seventh Judicial District nominating commission will be tasked with selecting three to five applicants to submit to the governor; the governor then will have 60 days after receiving the names to select two people to appoint. After serving one year in office, new judges must stand for retention votes in the next general election. If they are retained, they will serve four-year terms before facing another retention vote. 

Justice Eric Rosen is the nonvoting chair of the Seventh Judicial District Nominating Commission. It also includes Elina Alterman, Elizabeth Cateforis, Stephanie Davis, Lisa Harris-Frydman, Wesley Smith, and Daniel Watkins, all of Lawrence.

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