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David P. Drew will face Tom Parker on March 4 in Republican primary
By Ed Meyer
Beacon Journal staff writer
Published on Saturday, Feb 02, 2008
Akron attorney David P. Drew says he can bring new ideas to Summit County Common Pleas Court if he wins the March 4 Republican primary race for judge.
Drew, 44, who is facing Tallmadge attorney Tom Parker in the primary, says one of the first things he would do is streamline the docket by reducing the number of pretrial hearings.
''I don't want to name names,'' Drew said, ''but there are certain judges who put in pretrial after pretrial after pretrial. You show up, and you sit there on call day for three hours just to say: 'Okay, we don't have our case resolved.' And the judge tells you to come back next week.
''One of the things I would do is have the first pretrial in maybe three weeks or a month (after arraignment) . . . so when you show up at that very first pretrial, you've had a month to think this over.
''You either work the case out, or you set it for trial. That's it. And if you don't work it out, you say: 'Okay, here's your trial date. If you work it out before then, give me a call, we'll bring you in and we can resolve it.' ''
Another idea that Drew says he would at least like to suggest is an evening court for noncriminal cases.
''One of the problems we have,'' Drew said, ''is working families. They just can't get into court. Because the docket is as thick as it is, civil cases take a back seat to criminal cases . . . and the civil case is the last one of the day because there are no time constraints on a civil matter.''
One or two sessions of evening court per week, Drew said, might ease the logjam when working families get bumped from the court schedule by a criminal trial that runs longer than expected.
Parker, who has practiced law for 29 years since graduating in 1979 from Case Western Reserve University School of Law, points to his broad courtroom experience from coast to coast.
As a former partner of the firm Roetzel & Andress, Parker said he has handled civil cases in matters such as product and toxic chemical liability in 19 different states.
''I've reached the stage of my career where I want to take what I've learned in those experiences and give them back to the community by serving as a judge,'' Parker said.
''I've appeared before dozens of judges across the country, and I feel like I've learned from the best of them about how to conduct an efficient and fair court, and I want to bring that to the Summit County bench.''
Parker said he has tried cases in ''state courts, federal courts, magistrate courts, big cities, small cities. A few of my cases have actually been reviewed at the U.S. Supreme Court,'' he said, ''so it's been a pretty broad experience.''
Parker said he, too, has new ideas for lightening the caseload.
From his work in federal courts, Parker said what is known as a ''summary jury trial'' helps resolve cases efficiently.
''If both sides agree, you can come in, get a jury, present your information to the jury in a very abbreviated fashion and get an outcome that might help get your case settled,'' Parker said.
That type of trial, he said, is particularly beneficial for cases in which the financial stakes are not astronomical.
''The courts can't just be for big companies,'' Parker said.
The winner of the Drew-Parker primary will face Democrat Robert M. Gippin in the general election for Judge Marvin A. Shapiro's seat.
Shapiro is barred from running again because of a state-mandated age restriction in which judges may no longer serve if they turn 70 before taking office.
Ed Meyer can be reached at 330-996-3784 or emeyer@thebeaconjournal.com.
Akron attorney David P. Drew says he can bring new ideas to Summit County Common Pleas Court if he wins the March 4 Republican primary race for judge.
Get the full article here.
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