Judicial candidates focus on efficiency

Deepa Bharath

Four candidates contesting in the judges’ races said they have one

common goal -- to make the judicial system more efficient and

accessible to the public.

Glenda Sanders -- running against Irvine attorney David Brent for

Superior Court Judge, Office 27 -- said there is a vast group of

middle-income people who cannot afford legal representation.

“If you are very poor, you qualify for legal aid,” the Corona del

Mar resident said. “If you are rich, you can afford an attorney. But

those stuck in the middle cannot get access to a lawyer without

substantial financial detriment. That is a much under-represented

group in the community.”

Vickie Ann Bridgman, a Newport Heights resident, said she would

aim to make the court system less tedious for jurors.

“Our judicial system is not set up to be very efficient,” said

Bridgman, who is running against Kelly MacEachern for Superior Court

Judge, Office 22. “It’s important that judges make good use of their

time and make it a priority to start proceedings on time so that

jurors don’t have to wait.”

MacEachern, a Mission Viejo resident, said she would work to

simplify court procedures that have become too tedious and hard to

understand.

“The legal system has become prohibitive in terms of cost and

paperwork,” she said. “We need to make legal aid available to all

sections of the population. Minority populations in particular should

have outreach programs that help them with interpreters and so on.”

Court rules and regulations are made with judges in mind, not the

public, said Gay Sandoval -- running against Dana Point attorney John

Adams for Superior Court Judge, Office 21.

“Our legal system is not at all user-friendly, especially in civil

cases,” the Costa Mesa resident and former Daily Pilot columnist

said. “We need to change the rules and guidelines so that the average

persons may have a chance to defend themselves in a civil case.”

A SUPPORTER OF VICTIMS’ RIGHTS

Bridgman said she strongly supports victims’ rights, the death

penalty and the California three strikes law that puts anyone who

commits three felonies in prison for life.

“It’s had a real big effect on making the crime rate go down here

in California,” she said. “If you don’t have that, you’re just

waiting for these serious offenders to commit another crime. This is

a law that gets them off the streets.”

Judges in the past have also not paid too much attention to

collecting restitution for victims from sentenced prisoners, Bridgman

said.

Bridgman’s teenage son, Donny, was killed in a tragic car wreck on

Irvine Avenue in 1997.

A JUDICIAL TEMPERAMENT

MacEachern said she has an even temperament that will help her

look at victims and defendants alike. But, she too, like her

opponent, is vocal about victims’ rights.

“Victims need to be protected and need to have a voice,” she said.

“They need to have their constitutional rights protected.”

MacEachern said she decided to run for office because she wanted

to take a “less adversarial role” after working for the Orange County

district attorney’s office for 21 years and “contribute in a

different way to the legal community.”

“I think I have the jury trial experience necessary to run a

courtroom,” she said.

JOY IN FINDING SOLUTIONS

There is pleasure in adjudicating cases, says Sanders.

“I realized I enjoyed trying to find correct solutions to people’s

problems that could not be solved otherwise,” she said. “That planted

a seed in my mind.”

Also, as a business lawyer, she was dealing only with a small part

of the community, Sanders said.

“But as judge, I can contribute to a larger segment of the

population,” she said.

Sanders emphasized she had experience both with civil and criminal

cases that would give her a better understanding of all cases brought

before her.

PROTECTING CHILDREN

Sandoval got into the race for Judge Ronald Kline’s seat following

allegations that he possessed child pornography.

“That’s how all this started for me -- with the issue of

protecting children,” she said.

The main reason she entered the race, Sandoval said, was to give

“my skills to the community.”

Voters should not take any candidate at face value, she said.

“They should closely look at each candidate’s claims and not rely

on anything anybody says,” Sandoval said. “Voters should go to the

highest bidder, the one who has the most to offer.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.