Four judges to run unopposed for re-election

Four judges to run unopposed for re-election By Quintin Cushner — Staff Writer 11/14/03 Four northern Santa Barbara County judges are virtually guaranteed another term in their long, black robes as they run unopposed for re-election in March. Judges Rogelio Flores, Barbara Beck, Rodney Melville and James Iwasko all filed the mandatory “Declaration of Intention” to run for another six-year term in the March 2, 2004, election, according to Marlene Veatch of the Santa Barbara County Elections Division. No one else filed by the Nov. 5 deadline. Potential write-in candidates have until Dec. 15 to file a petition, Veatch said, but no one has filed yet. Flores presides over a courtroom in the Miller Criminal Division at the Santa Maria Courts Complex. Beck and Melville are assigned to the Cook Civil Division in the city. Iwasko hears criminal and limited-jurisdiction civil cases in Lompoc. Superior Court judges are elected every six years. In the event of a mid-term vacancy, the governor appoints a replacement. North County Judge Rick Brown, who is presiding over the Roger Jantz murder trial, officially retired in March 2003, and will step down at the conclusion of the trial. In October, Gov. Gray Davis appointed Arthur Garcia to replace Brown. Garcia works as Commissioner Subordinate Judicial Officer, a position that handles small claims, traffic, criminal arraignments and child support cases in Santa Maria. Santa Maria attorney John McGregor has been appointed by North County judges to replace Garcia. Staff Writer Quintin Cushner can be reached at qcushner@pulitzer.net, or by phone at 739-2217. :nav Source: http://www.lompocrecord.com/articles/2003/11/14/news/news18.txt