HANCOCK COUNTY — Gov. Eric Holcomb’s office has released the list of five candidates who are being interviewed to fill Judge Terry Snow’s seat in Hancock County Superior Court 1.
All five are attorneys who have practiced in Indiana courts. One already is working as a court commissioner. Two are deputy prosecutors.
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The application process closed in late October. The interview and consideration process is already under way, said Rachel Hoffmeyer, Holcomb’s press secretary. Snow, who has announced his retirement, will depart at the end of the year with a year left in his term.
The candidates are Marie Castetter, chief deputy prosecutor in Hancock County; Cody Coombs, the county’s court commissioner, who hears cases in the local courts; Bryan Findley, a deputy attorney general; Jessica Lacy, a local attorney who has practiced throughout Indiana; and Jeremy Teipen, a deputy prosecutor in Marion County. Castetter, Coombs and Lacy have announced they are running in 2020 to fill the Superior Court 1 seat, which is up for election.
Hoffmeyer said the governor wants to expedite the appointment. “The goal is to make the appointment in time for a smooth transition,” she said.
While Hoffmeyer could not give an exact date for the decision, she said the governor will be the one to make the final choice after a committee interviews all five candidates.
Findley, who works in the office of Attorney General Curtis Hill, was interviewed at the Statehouse on Thursday, Nov. 7, he said.
Castetter, Coombs and Lacy will be interviewed Nov. 22 at the Hancock County Courthouse. Teipen did not return calls seeking information about his candidacy.
Findley and Teipen are the new candidates added to the mix, but as of this week, neither had filed election paperwork with the county to run for the seat in the upcoming election. Still, it doesn’t mean one of them can’t be appointed to fill the seat until a new judge is voted in.
While nothing official has been released about how the interview process works, Hancock County Circuit Court Judge Scott Sirk went through the same process in 2017 when Judge Richard Culver retired. Sirk earned the appointment following an interview before winning the judge’s seat outright in the 2018 election.
Sirk’s interview was brief, around 45 minutes, he said, and it was conducted by three staff attorneys from the governor’s office who Sirk said were thorough in their questioning.
Sirk went to the Statehouse for his interview. He learned of the appointment a few days later, in early December, when he received a call directly from Holcomb.
“I was in my office in the court commissioner’s area when I received the call,” Sirk said. “I was humbled and honored to receive that support.”
Sirk was sworn into office on Dec. 16, 2017. He said he learned later that Holcomb treats the selection of judges as one of his major responsibilities.
Castetter said she is looking forward to the interview and is honored to be considered.
“I’m very grateful to be able to participate in the process and equally excited about being able to interview for the appointment,” Castetter said.
Coombs said he is focused on handling the cases in front of him and is not contemplating the future for now.
“I don’t think about it (the appointment) a whole lot,” Coombs said. “The appointment is not something I’m going to worry about until we know exactly what is going to happen.”
Lacy is excited for the chance to be interviewed for the judge’s seat and said it’s a great opportunity for an important community position. The judge in Superior Court 1 — one of three courts in the county — handles a heavy load of civil and some criminal cases.
“I’m going to go in and give it my best,” Lacy said. “I hope the interview goes well, and I’m really looking forward to that.”
Findley, a deputy attorney general who handles government litigation, was born and raised in Hancock County and attended Mt. Vernon schools. He said he recognizes the importance county residents place on the continuity of their public officials.
“I think public service is an endeavor, but public office should be a calling,” Findley said. “I think the circumstances at this point in time are ripe to change my role as a public servant for the state of Indiana to one as an official for the community as judge.”
Findley graduated from Butler University with a degrees in sociology, criminology, and philosophy. He graduated from Ave Maria School of Law in Naples, Florida, and work in real estate, property, business litigation and employment law. He joined the attorney general’s office in February 2017, where he represents the state in issues involving litigation, he said.
Teipen has worked for the Marion County prosecutor’s office since March of 2004, according to his LinkedIn profile. Teipen is the husband of former Hancock County deputy prosecutor Georgeanna Teipen, who was fired by Prosecutor Brent Eaton in September of 2016 just days before she had planned to resign amid allegations she mishandled a plea arrangement in a rape case.
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