GREENFIELD — They laughed and shook hands before getting started.
The three Republican candidates for Hancock Circuit Court Judge faced off in a debate Wednesday evening at the Hancock County Public Library, discussing their priorities if residents choose to put them on the bench — primarily how they’ll help address the opioid epidemic from their courtroom.
The race pits incumbent Scott Sirk — who was appointed to the bench by Gov. Eric Holcomb in December following the retirement of longtime Judge Richard Culver — against local attorneys Scott Wooldridge and D.J. Davis.
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No Democrats have filed to run in the primary.
Hancock Circuit Court oversees the county’s two problem-solving courts — Drug Court and the local Heroin Protocol — and each candidate said they want to see those programs grow and help more people.
Sirk said in the few months since taking over the bench, he’s already done his best to address the issue of drugs locally.
Ending the supply for drugs in Hancock County means getting drug dealers off the streets, he said. Since being appointed, he’s consistently chosen to send dealers to prison whenever he’s asked to decide a defendant’s sentence.
And the only way to cut the demand for drugs is to treat the person addicted to them, to help them onto the road of recovery, Sirk said. As circuit court judge, he’s been heavily involved with the county’s drug court program, and he hopes to expand it in the future, if elected.
Davis said he meets with people who struggle with addiction every day through his work as a defense attorney. He’s lost four clients to addiction in the last four years. That loss inspired him to find more ways to help, he said.
“My clients tell me they’d rather feel numb than live,” he said.
Davis told the crowd he wants to see the Drug Court program accept 50 people. Right now, only about 20 people are enrolled in the two-year treatment program. He also wants to see other problem-solving courts introduced, such as a mental health court, to ensure people who suffer from addictions are getting all the help they need.
Wooldridge wants to see drug issues be addressed sooner, before defendants commit felony-level crimes. Treatment programs aren’t always offered to low-level offenders, and that needs to change, he said.
Keeping kids safe is another part of the addressing the opioid epidemic, each candidate said, promising they’d work closely with the Indiana Department of Child Services to ensure kids are protected from their parents’ struggles and mistakes.
“Your decisions make huge impacts on people’s lives,” Wooldridge said. “That’s why you have to not only listen to the defendants but listen to the children.”
Running Hancock Circuit Court more efficiently is another promise each candidate made to voters, acknowledging that time in the courtroom is valuable and costly to attorneys’ clients.
Davis said making simple changes to the daily schedule would help solve some of the issues, like setting aside 30 minutes ahead of a hearing specifically for attorneys to meet with their clients and the opposing counsel to discuss a case.
“It gives everyone a half hour to get things done, and (clients are) not paying us hundreds of thousands of dollars to stand up there against the wall,” he said.
Sirk said empowering attorneys to hold these meetings ahead of coming to court is the best way to deal with the backlog of cases.
Wooldridge agreed with his opponents’ remarks but said he didn’t want the audience to leave the library with a bad perception of the local court system.
“There are places that are worse,” he said, drawing a laugh from the crowd.
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Debates between the Republican candidates for Hancock County Commissioner and Hancock County Sheriff can now be viewed online at the following links:
Sheriff debate: youtu.be/4JbyFnvt30M
Commissioner debate: youtu.be/zV8TXdfRvhs
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