Opinions

Voters should know the judges they'll be voting on

On Election Day, we will vote for candidates for Congress, governor, and the Alaska Legislature, and one that gets little attention, whether judges in and near our community should serve another term in office. With all the media attention on the other offices, many voters arrive with no idea how to vote for the judges on the ballot.

If you are one of those voters, take heart. There is a wealth of information only a click away. You can spend as much or as little time as you want researching the qualifications of the judges on the ballot. The Alaska Judicial Council, a nonpartisan, independent citizens' commission created by the Alaska Constitution, is required by law to provide you with the information to make an informed vote and also to recommend whether or not you should retain each judge on the ballot. All this information is available on the council's website, and in the state of Alaska's 2014 Official Election Pamphlet.

This year, my fellow council members and I encourage you to vote to retain all but one of the judges on the ballot. The council has taken the rare step of recommending against the retention of Judge William Estelle of Palmer. The council recommended that voters not give Judge Estelle another term in office because he filed 16 untrue affidavits under oath, swearing that he had completed or issued decisions in all matters that had been pending before him for more than six months, when in fact he had not. He filed 12 of these affidavits between Sept. 15, 2011 and Feb. 28, 2012, related to one undecided matter, and he filed four of the affidavits from Jan. 15 through Feb. 28, 2013 relating to a second undecided matter. Because he signed the untrue affidavits swearing that he had no decisions or uncompleted matters outstanding for more than six months, Judge Estelle continued to receive his salary on time, contrary to state law that prohibits a judge from being paid on time if the judge has undecided matters outstanding for longer than six months.

The courts routinely require and rely on sworn affidavits -- they are filed by police officers making search warrant applications, and by parties and lawyers in civil and criminal cases. As a former police officer myself, I know that when an officer swears in an affidavit filed with the court that a fact is true, the court relies on the truth of that officer's sworn statement. An officer who submitted even one untrue affidavit would not, in my opinion, be qualified or able to continue to perform his job. Similarly, I believe Judge Estelle's behavior in signing the untrue affidavits fell below the standard to which we hold our judges. That is why I joined the council in its unanimous vote to recommend against the retention of Judge Estelle.

So who is on the council? It includes three members appointed by the governor and three members appointed by the Alaska Bar Association after an election. The chief justice of the Alaska Supreme Court serves as chairperson. We serve as volunteers; we represent different regions of the state; and we come from different walks of life.

Alaska publishes more information about judicial performance than anywhere in the country or, for that matter, the world. You can review summaries of the council's evaluations in the Official Election Pamphlet and on the council's website at knowyouralaskajudges.com.

Dave Parker is member of the Alaska Judicial Council. He is a retired law enforcement officer and lives in Wasilla.

The views expressed here are the writer's own and are not necessarily endorsed by Alaska Dispatch News, which welcomes a broad range of viewpoints. To submit a piece for consideration, email commentary(at)alaskadispatch.com.

Dave Parker

Dave Parker is member of the Alaska Judicial Council. He is a retired law enforcement officer and he lives in Wasilla.

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