DISTRICT COURT DEPARTMENT 8

A veteran judge and an attorney who promises to hold himself to high ethical standards are the candidates vying for a seat in the District Court Department 8 race.

Doug Smith, a justice of the peace since 1994 is running against civil attorney Joshua Kunis. Smith touts his experience in a courtroom as his primary qualification for the District Court seat.

"I just decided it was time to move up," Smith said. "My experience would lend itself well to District Court."

Smith, 57, said justice of the peace courts are considered some of the busiest in the country, and managing that heavy caseload would translate well to District Court, which is also inundated with cases.

Kunis, 48, said if elected, he wouldn't be one of the judges caught in scandals who are constantly in the headlines.

"I'm still mostly proud of the this legal system, and I don't want to see it go to the dogs," he said.

In the past year, Family Court Judge Nicholas Del Vecchio has been accused of having an improper sexual relationship with an underage judicial assistant before he was a judge. District Judge Elizabeth Halverson was suspended from the bench amid allegations she mistreated staff, slept on the bench and improperly communicated with jurors.

Smith said judges who do their jobs well don't find themselves in negative situations.

He said he prides himself on being a judge who is not traditional. For example, Smith said, instead of offering traditional community service for misdemeanor prostitution cases, he's made defendants take their children to the park for 40 hours. He's also made defendants who don't have their high school diplomas earn an equivalency degree.

"Instead of sweeping the streets, it helps the public if they have degrees," Smith said.

He added he'd like to start court earlier than 9 a.m. in order to reduce the high-volume caseload.

According to August campaign contribution reports, Kunis has raised substantially less money for the campaign than Smith. Kunis had raised slightly more than $64,000 compared with Smith's more than $244,000.

The discrepancy didn't faze Kunis.

"I don't believe this race is going to be won on the size of someone's budget," Kunis said. "It's going to be won on my integrity, respect for the law, courtesy toward people and changing the system."

Kunis said his opponent is part of the "good ol' boys" network and noted Smith's ratings on Review-Journal 2008 Judicial Performance Evaluation survey.

In the survey, 66 percent of attorneys said they would retain Smith as a judge, a rating that ranked near the bottom compared with other justices of the peace.

Smith responded that any decision that is made by him will either disappoint the prosecution or the defense, maintaining his ratings were good.

Contact reporter Antonio Planas at aplanas@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-4638.