(Candidates’ statements are unaltered and published exactly as submitted.)
I have lived in Fall River Mills (Eastern Shasta County) for the past 15 years; my father and grandfather also lived there until their deaths. I have a general law practic in town and my wife, who is also and attorney, works with me. Our Fall River Mills office has one other attorney as well as a paralegal. Our daughter recently graduated from Hastings Law School and will join our practice as soon as she passes the bar exam.
I ran for election as a Shasta County Judge 2 years ago unsuccessfully. The single most important reason I lost at that time, was that all the sitting Shasta County Judges endorsed my opponent, who was a Court Commissioner. However this year, none of the Judges have endorsed either me or my opponent; I feel this gives our competition an even playing field.
Let me set forth the reasons I believe the voters should choose me over my opponent:
- Experience: I have practiced law 15 years longer than my opponent. I have handled many criminal cases; for years I was the conflicts attorney for the Burney Branch of the Court, this means I was assigned all cases the public defender could not handle in that region. I have tried many criminal cases before juries including both felonies and misdemeanors. But my emphasis has always been on civil cases; I have tried over 450 civil trials before a judge or a jury including breach of contract, real property disputes, property damage, personal injury, dissolution of marriage, probate, and business litigation. I believe I am one of the very few attorneys in Shasta County that have had this kind of broad experience.
- Balance to the Bench: There are 10 judges in Shasta County and 8 of the 10 judges worked in a District Attorney’s Office before becoming a Judge. Only 4 of the Judges had extensive civil trial experience before becoming a Judge. Approximately ½ of Shasta County Judges’ time is spent doing civil work and the other ½ doing criminal work. This unbalance of experience before becoming a Judge results from most Judges being appointed by the Governor; 2 of the last 4 California Governors had a career as a prosecutor and generally appointed Judges who worked in D.A.’s offices.
- Comparison of the Candidates: My opponent has spent most of his career as a prosecutor. About 10% of the body of law a Judge must interpret and follow is criminal law, whereas the remaining 90% is mostly civil law. Shasta County needs an experienced Judge with a solid background in civil law. Surprisingly, my opponent in his brochure, radio advertising and website calls himself a “Civil Litigator” but recently on the Ken Murray radio talk show he was forced to admit that he had never handled a single civil trial.
- Commitment to Quality Justice: If elected I am committed to attentively listening to each party’s side of the story, making an unbiased decision, and being fair and just while strictly following the law in every single case. I have always worked hard in the 32 years I have practiced law and will continue to do so as a Judge.
Experience counts because our views of people and society are formed by things we have seen and done during our lifetimes. I have dealt with many wonderful people over my career but occasionally have had to work with those who are dishonest and want to hurt others. I am capable of dealing with all types. Visit my website at reedforshastajudge.com for more information.
- FALL RIVER MILLS ATTORNEY JIM REED WILL BRING BALANCE TO THE SHASTA COUNTY BENCH
