Candidates line up for retiring judge’s seat

Candidates line up for retiring judge’s seat By Quintin Cushner — Staff Writer 12/9/03 At least five Santa Barbara County attorneys are poised to run for the Superior Court seat being vacated by Judge Barbara Beck, who is retiring in April. Candidates who took out the necessary papers Monday to file for the judicial election were Adrian Andrade, Edward Bullard, Richard Corbo Jr., James Herman and James Rigali. Andrade, Corbo and Rigali are private attorneys based in Santa Maria. Herman, the husband of Superior Court Judge Denise de Bellefeuille, practices in Santa Barbara. Bullard is a senior deputy district attorney in Lompoc. Would-be judges have until 5 p.m. Wednesday to file their Declaration of Candidacy, according to county Elections Supervisor Billie Alvarez. Write-in candidates for the vacancy have until Feb. 17, she said. If one candidate receives more than 50 percent of the vote during the March 2 primary election, then they will be declared the winner. If no one achieves that majority, the top two vote-getters will run off in the Nov. 2 general election. The six county judges running for re-election will be unopposed during the March primary election. Judges Rogelio Flores, Rodney Melville, James Iwasko, Thomas Anderle, J. William McLafferty and de Bellefeuille all will likely clinch another term then. The flurry of interest in Beck’s vacated position comes days after her decision to retire rather than seek re-election. In November, Beck declared her intention to run for another term because she was unsure of her eligibility for part-time work after retirement if she left office as a lame-duck judge, she said. She later learned she would be eligible regardless. The judge, who lives in Orcutt, was appointed to the Municipal Court in 1984, then elevated to the Superior Court in 1998. She’s a former public defense attorney and Air Force veteran. In addition to her part-time judicial work throughout California, Beck plans to spend her retirement relaxing with family on property she owns in Mississippi and Utah. Candidates for judge must pay a $1,395 filing fee and collect the signatures of 20 registered voters to be eligible. They must also be county residents and members of the State Bar for at least 10 years. Staff Writer Quintin Cushner can be reached at 739-2217, or by email at qcushner@pulitzer.net. :nav Source: http://www.lompocrecord.com/articles/2003/12/09/news/news17.txt