Wanda Barnett is a candidate for Piedmont Judicial Circuit Judge to replace Judge Currie Mingledorff. Read her response to the Mainstreet Newspapers candidate questionnaire below:Â
If you are the challenger, or running for an open seat, what do you hope to accomplish if elected to this position? What would you do differently from what’s being done now or in the past?
I am a straight shooter. Throughout my almost 40 years of practicing law, you get what you see with me. I am not beholden to those people who think they are special and above the rest of us. If you are tired of a two-tiered system where the rich and powerful get special treatment instead of fair, impartial treatment for everyone, I am your candidate. I know the law, and I will follow the law. But maybe even more importantly, I also have common sense, which seems to be missing too often nowadays. You need BOTH to be an effective Superior Court Judge.
Why are you the best candidate for this position?
I have almost 40 years of experience practicing in virtually ALL areas of the law handled by the Superior Court, and that experience is unmatched by any other candidate in this election.
The majority of a Superior Court Judge’s workload involves family law (divorce, custody, child support, etc.). My opponent has never tried ONE divorce case. My opponent has never tried ONE custody case. My opponent has never represented ONE client in family law cases who are going through one of the most traumatic events of their lives.
I have been a highly successful advocate for clients in family law matters right here in the Piedmont Judicial Circuit for almost 40 years. I have had thousands of hearings and trials in family law cases and all other types of cases that come before the Superior Court. And those are the cases I have actually tried – I have settled thousands more without trials. My real-world experience is unmatched and makes me the best candidate for Superior Court Judge. Everyone will get a fair trial in my courtroom. However, when someone is found to be a rattlesnake, I know how to deal with them, too.
What is the most important issue you see that involves the position you are running for?
Your next Superior Court Judge should be honest, knowledgeable, a hard worker, a straight shooter, fair, and have significant experience in ALL areas of the law handled in the Superior Court. I believe that I meet and exceed those criteria.
Tell voters a little about yourself and your background:
I am the fifth generation on my home place. I was born and raised in this community. I was the first member of my family to graduate from high school. I worked my way through college and law school and received a scholarship for law school because my grandmother had spent her whole life working in Harmony Grove cotton mill. The scholarship I received was for the poor mill kids. I came back home right out of law school and started my law practice in 1986. I have spent my entire career right here helping everyday the good, hardworking people with any and all legal problems that arose in their lives.
How do you see the role of judge evolving in the coming years? What are your plans for both the internal administrative aspects of the local judicial system and for how the court deals with crime concerns that seem to plague the area?
The role of a Superior Court judge has evolved into a system where people have lost respect due to judges being more concerned about being politically correct and liked by the parties and lawyers rather than doing their job. A judge’s job is -- and always will be -- to be fair, impartial, to seek the truth, and to rule with wisdom from experience and common sense. I have often been referred to as a being “tough as nails,” and that description tells you how I plan on dealing with someone who has been found to be a rattlesnake.
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