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Friday, December 22, 2006

Ind. Courts - New Jeffersonville City Court appointed; Vanderburgh County deputy prosecutor leaving

"R. Scott Lewis appointed judge of Jeffersonville City Court; Daniels names lawyer to replace Carmichael" is the headline to a story today by Lesley Stedman Weidenbener in the Louisville Courier-Journal. Some quotes:

R. Scott Lewis, a private attorney who has represented the Clark County commissioners and council, will be the new judge of Jeffersonville City Court, Gov. Mitch Daniels announced yesterday.

The governor appointed Lewis to replace Vicki Carmichael, who was elected to Clark Superior Court in November. The change will take place Jan. 1.

The City Court handles 1,500 to 2,000 cases a year, primarily traffic and misdemeanor charges.

Lewis, a graduate of the Indiana University School of Law, has worked in private practice for 10 years and served as a deputy prosecutor in Clark County. He is currently the attorney for the Clark County Council and also has served as an attorney for the county commissioners. * * *

Since the job is a part-time position, he said he will maintain his private practice.

Abraham Navarro, a deputy Floyd County prosecutor, also had applied for the post.

The change comes as Jeffersonville Mayor Rob Waiz is looking at ways to reduce the court's $180,000 annual cost. He had proposed to the City Council that it eliminate the court, but members declined to consider the request.

Kate Braser reports today in the Evansville Courier & Press:
A Vanderburgh County deputy prosecutor with 17 years of experience in that office soon will leave to become a Perry County magistrate.

Jonathan Parkhurst said this week he intends to fill a position in Perry County that will be open in March or April when another judge goes on maternity leave.

Until then, he will remain in Vanderburgh County, where he has been a deputy prosecutor since 1990.

Parkhurst will join Lucy Goffinet, a newly elected Circuit Court judge for Perry County. When she takes office on Jan. 2, Goffinet will become the first woman to don the judge's robe in Perry County.

Parkhurst and Goffinet previously worked together in the Vanderburgh County prosecutor's office from 2002 to 2004, then she became a deputy prosecutor in Warrick County. She has been Perry County's chief deputy prosecutor for about two years.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on December 22, 2006 09:24 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts