Porter County judge challenger wants to improve caseloads
By Amy Lavalley Post-Tribune correspondent October 7, 2012 3:16PM
Anthony Pampalone | Provided photo~Sun-Times Media
Updated: November 9, 2012 6:07AM
Democrat William Alexa, judge of Porter Superior Court II since December 2002, faces Republican Anthony Pampalone in the Nov. 6 general election.
Alexa, 71, of Union Township, was first appointed to fill an unexpired term on the bench, and was elected to his first full, six-year term in 2006. He also represented the Fifth District as a state senator for 14 years.
Pampalone, 37, also of Union Township, served on the Union Township Advisory Board for three years, and has served as township trustee since 2007. He handles civil and criminal matters out of a Munster law office.
“I’m very interested in serving the community and this gives me the opportunity to serve a larger number of people and on top of serving the county, it allows me to practice in my field,” Pampalone said of his run for the judgeship.
His goal, if elected, is to run an ethical, impartial courtroom. Pampalone said he wouldn’t be running if he didn’t think there was room for improvement, though because of constraints in judicial conduct, he, as well as Alexa, declined to go into details.
“I think there are caseload issues in general, and that’s something the individual person running that courtroom can impact,” he said, adding courtroom caseloads affect attorneys and defendants. “That’s one of my goals, to run an absolutely efficient courtroom.”
Alexa has worked in private practice and as a chief deputy prosecuting attorney in addition to serving in the senate.
“I enjoy doing what I’m doing and want to continue providing the people of the county a high level of service,” he said, adding he will continue to mete out fair and impartial judgments.
Because 85 to 90 percent of the defendants who come through his courtroom are involved with drugs, Alexa said that outside of the courtroom, he is involved in an initiative with the other judges and community groups for substance abuse counseling in the county jail.
Alexa said he brings his years of experience as a state senator and deputy prosecutor to the bench.
