There is a full slate of judicial candidates for the upcoming March 3 preferential and non-partisan judicial primary election.
There are no political parties when electing judges in Arkansas -- each judicial candidate must run in the non-partisan judicial primary to be elected.
However, the same names for all judicial races appear on both the Democrat and Republican Party ballots in Arkansas.
Should a voter not want to vote in the preferential primaries conducted by the Republican or Democrat Parties -- there is a non-partisan judicial ballot available at all polling centers.
In both Benton and Washington-Madison County Judicial Districts, there is a new and "open" Circuit Judgeship in each district.
In Washington County voters will have a contested judicial race as well as this new seat this year.
The 2020 election will be March 3. Runoffs will be on the general election ballot in November. The judge will take office Jan. 1, 2021.
There are five candidates vying for the new seat in the 4th Judicial District, which includes Washington and Madison counties.
Washington-Madison County
Circuit Judge, Division 8
Those running for this new position, which the salary is $168,096 for a six-year term are:
• Mieka Hatcher, 48, of West Fork, has served as a deputy prosecutor in the 4th District since 1998 and is now chief deputy prosecutor. She began her career as a prosecutor in Benton County Juvenile Court in 1997.
• Brian Hogue, 38, of Fayetteville, began his law practice with Wright, Lindsey & Jennings in Little Rock. Hogue joined his brother, David Hogue, in 2011 to form Hogue Law Firm in Fayetteville. He is the city attorney for Goshen and a certified mediator for civil and domestic relations matters.
• Conrad Odom, 54, has practiced law for 27 years with the Odom Law Firm and is a certified mediator. He served on the Fayetteville City Council and Fayetteville School Board. He ran unsuccessfully for state Senator in the mid-2000s.
• Tim Snively, 54, has practiced law for 22 years, representing clients in civil, criminal and family law matters. A University of Arkansas graduate, Snively has run unsuccessfully for Circuit and District Court positions in recent years. He is the husband of Circuit Judge Cristi Beaumont.
• Diane Warren, 55, is a former attorney ad litem, a lawyer appointed by a court to act as an advocate for the best interests of a minor. She is chairwoman-elect of the Juvenile Justice and Child Welfare Section of the Arkansas Bar Association. Warren is the only non-University of Arkansas law graduate, receiving a law degree from Indiana University's School of Law in Bloomington.
Washington-Madison County
Circuit Judge -- Division 3
Juvenile Division
This is a contested race of an incumbent Circuit Court Judgeship with Judge Stacey Zimmerman being opposed for another six-year term. This is a six-year position that pays $168,096 per year.
The candidates are:
• Judge Stacey Zimmerman, 56, of Fayetteville, the juvenile court judge since 1998. Judge Zimmerman hears about 150 cases each week involving children in foster care, abused and neglected children, adoptions, truancy and delinquency. She oversees 18 juvenile court officers. Judge Zimmerman estimates she's heard 19,000 cases in her 20 years on the bench. She also serves as administrative judge for the 4th District.
• Robert Depper, 41, has owned Depper Legal Services since 2014. He was assistant director of the state Administrative Office of the Court's Parent Counsel Program, a lawyer for the state Human Services Department Office of Policy and Legal Services and has been an attorney ad litem handling domestic relations and probate issues.
Both candidates are University of Arkansas' School of Law graduates.
--MAYLON RICE IS A FORMER JOURNALIST WHO WORKED FOR SEVERAL NORTHWEST ARKANSAS PUBLICATIONS. HE CAN BE REACHED VIA EMAIL AT [email protected]. THE OPINIONS EXPRESSED ARE THOSE OF THE AUTHOR.
Editorial on 01/22/2020