Jackson Jambalaya

A civil lawyer with no criminal experience is going to deliver justice to criminals. That's original.

many new appointees to Federal District Courts have little criminal law experience and they seem to do fine.

another possible: Chapman and Emfinger do the criminal cases and Walker concentrates on the civil backlog.

I bet he would do better for Madison than some of the Hinds County Judges do for our Circuit Court. Of course, in their defense, they can only try what comes to Court. I have met Chris Walker and I believe he will make a fine and straightforward Judge who bases his opinions on the law.

Marty Miller, current Assistant District Attorney for Madison-Rankin Counties, is the 800 pound gorilla in this race. An experienced prosecutor of murder, rape, robbery, fraud and corruption for years who lives his daily life in the circuit courts is my choice and apparently the choice of most law enforcement officials. NO learning curve for him.

Steve Ratcliff is the ONLY person in this race with actual bench experience as a judge. He also ran a successful hard-fought campaign against now Senator Will Longwitz in 2010 and won. If memory recalls, both camps put over 100k on the board. How is he not the front-runner in this race? ADA's make awful judges, ask any attorney.

experienced ADAs make great criminal trial judges. white collar civil attorneys have no conception about street crime. it will be an interesting race.

Experienced ADAs don't make good judges. Even experienced DAs don't make good judges. Can you imagine Faye Peterson as a judge? She'd be another Judge Green. Neither one knows the first rule of evidence.

In the 20th circuit court district, the candidate most plugged into the Rankin County political scene and familiar to the electorate has the advantage. That candidate is Marty Miller. It so happens that Marty is also very well qualified and very well prepared. Just the way it is.

Marty has the experience and temperament to be a fine judge. I've even heard him in court quote the Mississippi Rules of Evidence 8:41. Your gripes with Hinds County should not be a consideration for this race.

To practice or rule in a criminal case one does not need much, if any, criminal law experience...look at all the first year attorneys practicing criminal law. In my opinion, a judge that has little to no experience in criminal law would be better suited since that judge would not bring any prosecutorial bias to the bench. I'd rather let 10 guilty go than sentence one in convent man to jail. Trial experience and a commanding knowledge of the rules of evidence is key, as well as an unbiased view of the parties or defendant before the court.

I have grown up around lawyers and practice in both Madison and Rankin; and Based on what I know and have heard, Chris Walker will be a great judge for Madison and Rankin Counties. He has many years experience in the courtroom and will uphold the Constitution and Rule of Law. Madison and Rankin need another judge that will decide cases based on the facts and the law presented, not what they believe should be the outcome, and Chris Walker is the right person for the bench.

Maybe it's true that you silk stocking big firm civil lawyers, who've rarely even been in court much less stood before a jury with a person's very life in your hands, have such little regard for the experience it takes to effectively practice criminal law. Next time your loved one is facing a prison sentence I am sure that any ole first year lawyer will do. Thanks for insulting all non-first year criminal defense lawyers. We will be sure to not vote for your guy if he thinks like you do-

I have seen Chris Walker in the courtroom. He is an astute attorney and a fine, experienced litigator. He will be a fair judge in civil and criminal cases-and that's what all parties or attorneys should expect.

DA's and ADA's should not be permitted to be in the bench in the counties where they prosecuted. It's ridiculous to think they can be "fair and impartial" when they are making rulings. When Emfinger took the bench he asked defendants to sign this ridiculous waiver saying that the didn't want him to recuse himself and acknowledging that he may or may not have worked in their case while he was in DA's office. Yeah that's fair. I like Marty.. Super nice guy. But how much deck stacking does Guest need? You have two prosecuting judges already.

Assistant DAs are qualified to be assistant DAs. And according to some, Attorney General. Try to talk with them about any other legal issue and you will confuse them. I'd rather have civil and criminal court split.

3:46 - "Silk stocking big firm civil lawyers..." I suppose you're responding to my post at 2:42. I practice criminal defense and Authored the post to which you responded. I did not intend to insult anyone. I also was not referring to the stress or responsibility that comes along with practicing criminal defense. I was just responding to the comments that spouted off about civil attorneys not being able to handle a criminal case from the bench. Would you rather have an experienced trial attorney that has a good command of the rules of evidence or someone that does not? An unbiased person that will read everything forwards and backwards or someone that comes to the bench weeks after sending defendants to jail?

Well you lawyers can argue about what kind of lawyer you want as a judge, but we voters want a judge who will put CRIMINALS in jail. In case you haven't noticed, crime is on the rise everywhere. We don't want Madison and Rankin Counties to be overrun with criminals like our neighbors.

I'm for Marty. He has made a living putting the bad guys behind bars. He'll insist that every criminal appearing before him receives a fair trial followed by a fair hangin'.

A lawyer doesn't build and maintain a successful practice for 30 years without knowing the rules of procedure and evidence inside and out. Most litigating attorneys develop those skills quickly, although more years of doing it mean, well, more experience. I'd be happy to vote for a fair, experienced man like Chris Walker!

2:28, I'm a voting citizen, and I don't want a judge just sending people to jail without being fair. Just because someone is arrested doesn't mean they are guilty, and just because someone pleads guilty doesn't mean they are guilty. Judges are supposed to be FAIR and IMPARTIAL, and that's what this voter wants.

The mindset that voting for an ex prosecutor because he will put criminals away is very disheartening. People aren't criminals until they are convicted. Having an ex prosecutor on the bench just tilts the scales of justice in favor of the prosecution which should never happen. It's only a matter of time until one of these voters has a family member in trouble and they are wishing they had an open minded, non biased judge in the bench. Does the bias appear openly in court? No. But do you get a little home cooking like the opposing teams umpires, you bet.

There is no better choice than Chris Walker. One of his opponents was a real estate lawyer and the other is clearly biased for the prosecution. No contest!! He is a fair man that clearly understands the courts and most importantly the Rules of Procedure. The reference to "silk stocking firm" is surely a mistatement od referring to the firm he co-founded. His firm is mainly composed of down to earth civil attorneys with excellent reputations.

It doesn’t take years of courtroom experience to understand Criminal Procedure and quote the Rules of Evidence. It takes someone who can be nonpartisan and enforce the Rule of Law. Chris Walker by far has the most forthright character and legal experience out of all 4 candidates. Not sure Miller could do much on his own without the Republican Party running his campaign. Hey, I thought this was a nonpartisan race! If somebody bends the rules to get elected, what do you think he will do if he gets elected?

I have known Chris Walker for nearly 30 years, he has been my opposition in court at times and I truly believe that he would make the most excellent Circuit Court Judge. His ability to present evidence from both Plaintiff and Defense sides of the Court in a clear and concise manner for the jury to understand is exemplary. I know that he would be fair to all and a great asset to the Judicial system.

I've tried cases with Chris years ago. I learned a lot from him. He is scrupulous about the facts and made sure nothing was ever even suggested without him knowing it was so. He is intelligent, has integrity, a sense of right and wrong that he got from his upbringing & faith and has extensive courtroom experience. He was always prepared and focused on the task at hand. I am glad he is willing to give his talents to the bench.