What is important in a Judge? The most important quality is integrity, which is wisdom, character, honesty, and moral courage. Experience is also important, but not just any experience.
My experience is deep and wide. I have worked extensively in the branches of our government that make the law and interpret the law. For seven years I worked at the highest level of the judiciary: the Federal Courts. My job was to analyze facts and law and write legal opinions for Federal Judges in doing their job of making sure the lower courts, including municipal courts, have not messed up. Before that, I was legislative counsel in the United States Senate, serving on the U.S. Senate Judiciary Committee and advising our Senator. While I was still in law school, I clerked for the Alabama Attorney General’s office, again, conducting extensive legal research and writing complicated legal arguments. My experience has given me a great and deep knowledge of the law, from the US Constitution and complicated federal regulations to the Code of Alabama and municipal codes.
As a municipal prosecutor, I am the one who resolves the vast majority of traffic and misdemeanor case that come through the municipal court. As in most municipal courts, the cases rarely go to trial before the part-time judge. Experience that matters is not just about the number of traffic tickets a judge processed through the municipal court, it is about the depth of understanding of the law and demonstrated integrity. Municipal courts are very important, however, when I compare my municipal court experience to my experience in the highest courts in the land, it is like comparing a tricycle to a tractor. Yes, experience matters: I am the experienced candidate, and I also drive a tractor!
Media Release/Friends of MARY BASCHAB-HASLACKER for District Judge
