Sitting Down with James Nusbaum, Judicial Candidate

The initial impression I had when I met Jim Nusbaum was one that stayed with me through out the interview. He is friendly, has a great sense of humor but he takes this campaign and the idea of becoming a Judge on the Lucas County Common Pleas Court very seriously. The whole concept of how the terms are created for Judges isn’t something most of us realize. We see at the ballot the different dates that are assigned for a term, the one that Jim is running for is the term beginning 1/06/07 which is the term Judge Wittenberg is retiring from. These terms are set forth by the Constitution and stated in the Ohio Revised Code. As an example, Judge Linda Jennings who is Mr. Nusbaum’s opponent was just appointed this May to the term that would have a date of 1/02/07, the former seat of Judge Zouhary, yet that is not the term she is running for election in.

Jim is a reader of blogs, yet as a judicial candidate trying to have a blog could be a challenge, given how closely he follows Canon Seven. He is a supporter of increased technology and would like to see the Common Pleas Court become more user friendly.

Mr. Nusbaum made it very clear he is not interested in negative campaigning; he plans to run a traditional campaign; attending events/festivals and media with a focus on what he can bring from his experience to the Common Pleas Court. Judicial campaigns are different, personal beliefs should not be a campaign issue; a position as a judge is to fairly interpret the law.

There was one specific part of the interview that was most revealing about what type of Judge Jim Nusbaum would be; and what he felt was the difference between him and his opponent, the next paragraph is in Jim’s words:

"I've served in a leadership capacity in the Community that she has not, that experience has been a huge thing for me and I'll tell you why when I was President of the Board which was 05, we rotate every calendar year, it's a very different position than any other on the School Board... When you are a President of a School Board or a Judge, whatever capacity you hear this whole spectrum of problems and in your mind it is a spectrum of problems. It can be any where from my kid didn't make the basketball team, my kid can't read, whatever it is; what you have to remember is even though you have this whole sort of spectrum of problems where it fits on your little importance scale? It's really important to that person. I think that's a good lesson as a Judge because those people in front of you, maybe it's a misdemeanor, maybe it's a fifth degree felony so it’s not a first degree felony, or maybe it's a civil case worth $30,000.00 rather than 30 million dollars; it's really important to them."

From a political standpoint he is respected by local Republicans, Independents and Democrats A and B Team alike. In summary, Jim Nusbaum comes across as a person who not only has the legal ability required to be a Judge but the compassion balanced with the ability to not take lightly decisions that will have a serious affect on those who would come before him on the bench.

(This post will be included in the Wednesday Ohio Carnival of Politics, which is possible thanks to the hard work of Paul Miller of Northwest Ohio Net.)