TOPEKA—A nominating commission charged with appointing a district magistrate judge in Republic County has issued a request for assistance from the public.
The twelve-member commission is responsible for selecting a district magistrate judge to fill the vacancy created by the death of Judge John Eyer.
“The nominating commission is especially interested in receiving recommendations from the general public. All of the citizens of Republic county are requested to consider this matter and the names of suggested nominees submitted by the public will be welcomed by the commission,” according to Justice Nancy L. Moritz, departmental justice for the 12th Judicial District.
Kansas statutes require that a district magistrate judge be a resident of the county in which appointed at the time of swearing in, be a graduate of a high school or its equivalent, and if not regularly admitted to practice law in Kansas, be certified by the Supreme Court as qualified to serve in the job.
Suggested appointees are requested to complete questionnaires for the position. The completed forms should be returned to Darrell E. Miller, commission secretary, 208 N. Commercial, Mankato, KS 66956 no later than August 9, 2013. The forms are available in the office of clerk of the district court of Republic County and online at www.kscourts.org.
The nominating commission will convene at 9 a.m., August 27, 2013, in the Republic County Courthouse, Belleville, to interview the suggested appointees. The meeting will be open to the public; however, the commission has the authority to adjourn to executive session to discuss personal traits of the suggested appointees.
Notices of the vacancies have been mailed to every attorney in the 12th Judicial District by the chairman of the commission. Republic County is one of the six counties in the 12th Judicial District. They include Cloud, Jewell, Lincoln, Mitchell, Republic, and Washington Counties.
The nominating commission includes Justice Moritz, as the nonvoting chair, and Dan Brewer, Concordia; Carol K. Good, Barnard; Jerry L. Harrison, Beloit; Dwight L. Daniels, Beloit; Daniel D. Metz, Lincoln; Michael E. Johnson, Courtland; Darrell E. Miller, Mankato; J. Bradley Lowell, Concordia; Douglas G. Simms, Belleville; Steven G. Melby, Mankato; Regine L. Thompson, Scandia; and Bruce E. Meyer, Palmer.