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As a subscriber you can listen to articles at work, in the car, or while you work out. Subscribe NowApplications are now being accepted to fill a vacancy on the Lake County Superior Court created when Judge Elizabeth F. Tavitas joined the Indiana Court of Appeals last month.
Indiana Supreme Court Justice Geoffrey Slaughter, who chairs the Lake County Judicial Nominating Commission, announced Friday that applications to succeed Tavitas are now available in all clerks’ offices in the Lake Circuit and Superior courts. The vacancy in Lake Superior Court Room 3, Family Law Division, opened on Aug. 6, when Tavitas formally joined the COA as successor to now-retired Judge Michael Barnes.
Candidates interested in the Gary-based judgeship must submit 10 paper copies of their applications to the JNC’s secretary, R. Cordell Funk, by 4 p.m. CDT, Monday, Sept. 17. Applications should be sent to Funk’s office, 6629 W. Lincoln Highway, Suite 6, Crown Point, Ind., 46307.
By statute, the JNC must submit the names of the “three most highly qualified applicants” to Republican Gov. Eric Holcomb for consideration within 60 days of the vacancy, creating an Oct. 5 due date. Thus, the JNC will hold interviews sometime between Sept. 24 and Oct. 4, though a date has not officially been set.
“Since the due date is close, an applicant may supplement any attachments that they do not presently have, such as the required school transcripts or Doctors letters necessary to fully respond to question 25, not later than the time of their interview,” a notice of judicial opening states. Once Holcomb receives the names of the three finalists, he will select the next Lake County judge within 60 days.
Another vacancy will soon come open in Lake County when Judge Jesse Villalpando steps down from the bench on Dec. 31. Villalpando informed the Supreme Court last month that he wants to retire in December rather than stand for retention. That decision came two months after the Office of Judicial Administration filed a petition asking the court to appoint a temporary replacement for Villalpando, citing dereliction of duty and unsubstantiated conspiracy theories involving court officials.
After his retirement announcement, the justices ordered the Indiana Secretary of State’s Election Division to remove Villalpando’s name from the Nov. 6 general election ballot, which would include judicial retention votes. A spokeswoman for the Indiana Supreme Court said Slaughter, Funk and the Lake County JNC are currently working on establishing the timeline to find Villalpando's successor.
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