Application period for District Court judge seats to begin soon

EPHRATA — The application period for two judgeships on the Grant County District Court bench probably will open sometime within the next two weeks, and interested people then will have two weeks to apply, said Grant County human resources director Kirk Eslinger.

Grant County Commissioners discussed the process with the court’s current presiding judge, Janis Whitener-Moberg, and other county officials during a meeting last week.

Whitener-Moberg announced earlier this month she plans to retire Aug. 31. A district court judge position opened up in late April when Tyson Hill was appointed to the Grant County Superior Court.

While the two judgeships will be advertised at the same time, they will start at different times, Eslinger said. The candidate replacing Hill will start immediately. Whitener-Moberg’s replacement will start Sept. 1.

Grant County Chief Deputy Prosecutor Kevin McCrae noted if Hill’s replacement is in private practice, he or she may need time to transfer their cases.

Applications will be reviewed by a committee, including Grant County Prosecutor Garth Dano; Brett Hill, Director of Public Defense for Grant County; Whitener-Moberg; and a Grant County attorney still to be selected. Whitener-Moberg said the committee should have an attorney who’s not a prosecutor or public defender, preferably a lawyer with trial experience.

Candidates also will be subject to a check of the state bar association records to determine if there are past or pending disciplinary actions. Local attorneys also will be surveyed for their reactions to the candidates.

The committee members will evaluate and rank the applicants, and give the list to the commissioners, who will appoint the judges.

Commissioner Cindy Carter said the last time commissioners chose a district court judge, they started by interviewing the top three candidates. Eslinger said commissioners may want to interview a couple more candidates, since they’re picking two judges this time.

The interviews will be in a public session. Eslinger said typically only the commissioners are allowed to ask questions and commissioners can discuss the candidates in executive session.