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Lake County attorneys are recommending the 10 judges on the Nov. 8 ballot all be retained for another term, according to the results of a survey conducted by the Lake County Bar Association.
The survey is designed to help the public make informed decisions at the voting booth about their local judicial officers. The Lake County Bar Association conducted the survey, asking whether the nine Lake Superior Court judges should be retained and the Lake Circuit Court judge be re-elected.
Attorneys living and practicing in Lake County were asked to rate on a scale of 1 to 10 the judicial officers in three areas of competence, temperament and character.
Also, the lawyers were asked to provide an overall rating for each judge and a yes-or-no recommendation for retention. The five possible rating levels were: exceptionally well-qualified (9-10); well-qualified (7-8); qualified (5-6); less than qualified (3-4); and not qualified (1-2).
The Lake Superior judges and the percentage of survey respondents saying yes to retention are as follows:
Judge Samuel Cappas: 87.4%
Judge Aleksandra Dimitrijevic: 82.2%
Judge Thomas Hallett: 79.0%
Judge Gina Jones: 62.0%
Judge Calvin Hawkins: 71.8%
Judge Kristina Kantar: 77.9%
Judge Bruce Parent: 80.1%
Judge Thomas Stefaniak: 78.6%
Judge Stephen Scheele: 86.3%
The overall rating for each superior court judge is as follows:
Judge Samuel Cappas: 9.0
Judge Aleksandra Dimitrijevic: 8.4
Judge Thomas Hallett: 8.2
Judge Gina Jones: 6.8
Judge Calvin Hawkins: 7.8
Judge Kristina Kantar: 8.0
Judge Bruce Parent: 8.3
Judge Thomas Stefaniak: 8.3
Judge Stephen Scheele: 8.9
Additionally, Lake Circuit Judge Marissa McDermott was recommended for re-election by 84% of the survey respondents. She also received an overall rating of 8.5.
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