Up and Coming Weekly is a weekly publication in Fayetteville, NC and Fort Bragg, NC area offering local news, views, arts, entertainment and community event and business information.
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12 OCT 29 - NOV 4, 2014 ELECTION GUIDE 2014 ELECTION 2014: NC SUPREME COURT ASSOCIATE JUSTICE (You may vote for 1) Judge Eric Levinson Residence: Cornelius Education: UNC-Chapel Hill School of Law, J.D; University of Georgia, BBA Finance, cum laude; Institute on Political and Economic Systems, Fund for American Studies (coursework Georgetown University, White House internship) Occupation: Superior Court Judge Legal/judicial Experience: Superior Court Judge, 2009-present; Rule of Law Counselor, Kabul, Afghanistan, 2008; Justice Attache to Iraq, U.S. Department of Justice, Baghdad, Iraq, 2007-08; Associate Judge, N.C. Court of Appeals, 2003-07; District/Family Court Judge, 1996-2002; Assistant District Attorney, 1992-96 I am the only candidate who has served as a judge on the (1) Court of Appeals, (2) District/Fam- ily Court, and (3) Superior Court. I am the only candidate who has presided over the most serious criminal cases and most complex civil disputes in our trial court- rooms. I am the only candidate who has served in our trial and appellate courtrooms as a judge. Except for my service to our na- tion as the Justice Attache to Iraq (establishing Major Crimes Courts to prosecute terrorists), and my counsel to the Supreme Court of Afghanistan, I have been a judge since 1996. No other candidate has this breadth of experience. As a judge, it is not my function to make public policy decisions but to adhere to the rule of law and to preserve individual freedoms. I am described as a "brave, in- dependent jurist" and "Constitu- tional conservative." I have bipar- tisan support and am endorsed by former Chief Justice I. Beverly Lake, Jr. and former Justice Robert Orr, who say I am "simply the most qualified candidate." Judge Robin Hudson Residence: Wake County Education: Yale University, B.A.; UNC- Chapel Hill, J.D. Occupation: Justice, Supreme Court of North Carolina Legal/judicial Experience: Justice, NC Supreme Court, 2007-present; Judge, NC Court of Appeals, 2001-2007, first woman elected without being ap- pointed; 1976-2001, law practice; 1977-present, NC Bar Association; 2005- 2006, Vice President; 1978-present, NC Association of Women Attorneys. In 13+ years as an appellate judge, I've made thousands of decisions; my only agenda is to uphold the law and be fair, not to do what is popu- lar. In 38 years as a lawyer and judge, I've handled every kind of case our Supreme Court sees. I am the only justice who spent nearly 25 years representing people all over the state, at all levels of court and ar- gued in the NC Supreme Court more than 50 times. My work was primar- ily private practice, where I managed the firm, provided jobs, and made payroll monthly. From 1993 through 2000, I was trial and appellate judge (part-time) for OSHA cases. I am endorsed by more than a dozen former justices and judges, newspapers, teachers, law enforce- ment, working people, women's groups and many others, bipartisan. Despite being viciously attacked by ads distorting my record – ads funded by outside special interests - I came in first in the May primary. We all want and deserve even- handed judges. I'm fair; I'm inde- pendent. And I understand how our complex laws affect real people. North Carolina requires no less on our courts. Please visit www.robinhudson.org, and thanks for your vote. Mike Robinson Residence: Winston-Salem Education: BA in Economics, David- son College (1977) JD with Honors, UNC Chapel Hill School of Law (1980) Occupation: Practicing Attorney and Legal Counselor; Elected State Bar Councilor, Chair of two State Bar Council committees Legal/judicial Experience: Practicing attorney for over 33 years. Admit- ted to Federal and State Courts throughout North Carolina, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals and US Supreme Court. Have experience with cases at all levels including cases before the North Carolina Supreme Court. I am a lifelong resident of Win- ston-Salem. I have practiced law in North Carolina more than 33 years, advising and representing business- es and individual entrepreneurs. I focus my practice on business disputes and corporate issues. My reputation is of one who is hard- working, honest, fair, thoughtful and community-minded. I have been heavily involved in volunteer work in my community and state including with the church and Hospice. Supreme Court Justices should impartially and consistently inter- pret and enforce the U.S. and North Carolina Constitutions and the laws passed by the North Carolina legislature. Because of my extensive legal experience, I appreciate the need for laws, rules and court decisions to be clear and understandable. The Supreme Court needs someone with the significant business experience I will bring to the court. I have received the endorsement of former Supreme Court Justices I. Beverly Lake and Bob Orr. Judge Cheri Beasley Residence: Raleigh Education: B.A. Political Science/ Economics, Douglass College/Rut- gers University Juris Doctorate, The University of Tennessee College of Law Oxford University, England Occupation: Justice, Supreme Court of N.C. Legal/judicial Experience: Justice, Supreme Court of N.C. Judge, N.C. Court of Appeals, District Court Judge and Assistant Public Defend- er, Cumberland County Justice Cheri Beasley serves on the N.C. Supreme Court, our state's highest court. Justice Beasley is an experienced judge: Beasley became a judge over 15 years ago. She was elected to the N.C. Court of Appeals, serving for 4 years. Justice Beasley served as a District Court Judge in Cumberland County, presiding in Criminal, Family, Civil, Juvenile and Traffic Courts for 10 years. Justice Beasley knows the impor- tance of preserving individual liber- ties, judicial interpretation, and AP- PLYING the rule of law, and remains committed to fundamental values of integrity and fairness. The N.C. Constitution guarantees additional individual rights for North Carolin- ians, and Justice Beasley is commit- ted to applying the state constitu- tion and state law whenever federal law does not govern. To Beasley, cases are serious with far-reaching effects. She says, "We all share an interest in an experienced Supreme Court that upholds the rule of law — mindful that these cases affect real families and real businesses across our state. I'm asking for your support." Justice Beasley has long-standing service to our communities, educa- tion, and mentorship. Justice Beas- ley holds strong family values. She and her husband of over 20 years, Curtis Owens, a clinical research scientist, and their 13-year-old twin sons worship at First Baptist Church of Raleigh. ELECTION 2014: NC SUPREME COURT ASSOCIATE JUSTICE (You may vote for 1)