Eight seek chance to be judge
By Steve Herring
Published in News on September 22, 2015 1:46 PM
Eight lawyers from the 8th Judicial District have submitted their candidacies for appointment to complete the unexpired term of the late District Court Judge Tim Finan.
The term ends in 2016. Gov. Pat McCrory will make the appointment.
The district includes Wayne, Lenoir and Greene counties.
The candidates are William W. Bland, Paul T. Cleavenger, Kevin F. MacQueen, Christopher Rogerson, Paige R. Rouse, James W. "Will" Spicer III, William Curtis Stackhouse and Annette W. Turik.
Finan, 62, died June 30, and under state law, it is the responsibility of the judicial district bar to nominate five candidates for consideration by the governor.
Eligible lawyers in the district will be able to vote for their five top choices.
Tonya Barber, president of the 8th Judicial District, said she was not surprised by the number of candidates.
"I think it was probably par for the course," she said. "(The ballot) already has been sent (to attorneys), and I have started receiving completed ballots.
The deadline to return the ballots is Sept. 30.
In the event of a tie for fifth place, the names of those candidates involved in the tie will be sent to the governor together with the names of the four candidates receiving the highest number of votes. The governor can select a replacement from the five or make his own, she said. However, the governor traditionally picks from the list, Ms. Barber said.
The appointment is expected in October.
* Bland of Goldsboro has been a partner in the firm of Bland, Heekin & Stanley in Goldsboro since 2003. He was an assistant district attorney from 1993 to 1999. Bland received his bachelor's degree from Duke University and his master's of accounting from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he also earned his law degree.
* Cleavenger of Kinston began practicing law in the 8th Judicial District in 1989 being in private practice from that time until 2008 when he joined the district attorney's office. He will retire from the district attorney's office on Sept. 30. In his letter to Ms. Barber, Cleavenger said if appointed he would not seek election to the seat in 2016 so that candidates would not have to face an incumbent.
* MacQueen of LaGrange, who has a practice in Goldsboro, graduated from North Carolina State University and the University of Arkansas School of Law.
* Rogerson of Kinston ran for judge in 2008 when Judge Joe Setzer retired. He is a graduate of the Campbell University Law School and has worked for the Christopher Rogerson law firm since 2002.
* Ms. Rouse of Goldsboro has served as an assistant district attorney for the 8th Judicial District since 1998. She earned a bachelor's degree from Meredith College and received her law degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
* Spicer of Goldsboro received his bachelor's degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his law degree from Samford University's Cumberland School of Law in Birmingham, Ala. He served as Pikeville town attorney from July 2008 to February 2015 and currently works with the state treasurer's office as in-house counsel for the unclaimed property division.
* Stackhouse of Goldsboro has worked in the District Attorney's Office since September 2009. He has a bachelor's degree from N.C. State University and earned his law degree from the North Carolina Central University School of Law .
* Ms. Turik of Kinston is a partner in the Kinston law firm of Wooten and Turik. She earned her law degree from the North Carolina Central University School of Law.