Pamela Meyerson: Candidate Profile

Note: Answers provided have not been edited for grammar, misspellings or typos. In some instances, candidate claims that could not be immediately verified have been omitted. Jump to:BioKey IssuesQA Bio City: Oak ParkWebsite: http://votemeyerson.comOffice sought: 11th Subcircuit (Urso vacancy)Age: 52Family: Married; 3 sons aged 25, 23, and 19.Occupation: Attorney, Law Office of Pamela McLean MeyersonEducation: JD, University of Chicago, 1983 BS, Business Administration, DePaul University, 1980Civic involvement: Schools: Co-chair, Oak Park elementary school district's 1999 campaign raising 45 million dollars to build and renovate schools. Other school leadership positions 1997-2008 include elementary facilities committee member, middle school leadership team, high school citizens' advisory council. Youth sports and clubs: Park District skate park task force member (2001-2002). Founding leader, Beye School CampFire Club (2001). Awards banquet chair, OPRF Hockey Club (2004-2009). Arts: Board member (1989-1996) and president (1995-1996), Oak Park Festival Theatre, producing Shakespeare and other professional classic plays outdoors. Faith communities: Secretary, OPRF Community of Congregations, March 2009-present. Member, Unity Temple Unitarian Universalist Congregation, 1991-present (legal committee member, taught Sunday School). Voter education and support: Election judge, 2006-present. Member and Triton College board observer, League of Women Voters.Elected offices held: None.Have you ever been arrested for or convicted of a crime? If yes, please explain: No.Candidate's Key Issues Key Issue 1 Independence from political influence.I am running on my qualifications and experience. I don't believe a judgeship should be a patronage plum.Key Issue 2 Fairness. I would give everyone who appears before me an equal chance to be heard--whether they are rich or poor, plaintiff or defendant, well-connected or not; whether they have the best lawyer in town or are struggling to represent themselves.Key Issue 3 Qualifications and experience. All 11 bar associations rated me as either "Recommended,""Highly Recommended" or "Qualified." The Chicago Bar Association says I am "an experienced practitioner . . .well regarded for her legal ability and outstanding temperament." The Chicago Council of Lawyers says I am "respected as a hard-working, knowledgeable and highly ethical practitioner."Questions Answers Do you favor the appointment of judges or do you prefer the election process' Please explain your answer.Faced with a long list of judicial candidates, many voters take the time to research the candidates. But many either skip the judicial elections or vote for a candidate based on name, ballot position or gender. An appointive system in theory would be preferable, but in practice it depends on who is doing the appointing. (We have seen how a U.S. Senate appointment might go terribly wrong in the wrong hands.)I would favor a rigorous third-party screening process to develop a list of qualified candidates from which the appointer could choose.If judicial elections do continue, they should be reformed. The influence of politics and money is too great. I favor nonpartisan, publicly financed judicial elections.What special qualifications or experiences make you the best person to serve as a judge?My education and knowledge of the law, my broad experience and, equally important, my independence from political or other outside influence, qualify me to be the kind of judge Cook County needs:-- Every one of the 11 bar associations that evaluated me gave me a positive rating. They looked at my training at the University of Chicago Law School. They looked at my 28 years of experience in the courtrooms of Cook County. They looked at my community service?both pro bono legal work and volunteer work in the community. They interviewed people who know me?colleagues, judges and opposing counsel. And allthe bar associations concluded that I have the skills and experience to be a judge.-- I have broad experience representing individuals and small businesses in many areas of law. I am a civil litigator, small business advisor, arbitrator, teacher and community leader. After graduating from the University of Chicago Law School in 1983, for six years I handled commercial lawsuits for two Chicago firms, then started my own practice in Oak Park. I represent individuals and small businesses in civil disputes involving contracts, construction, fair housing, consumer fraud, and other conflicts. I also organize and advise small businesses and review and draft their agreements. My business clients have ranged from restaurants to record companies, contractors to computer consultants, midwives to meatpackers. -- I have heard cases fairly and run proceedings efficiently as an adjudicator of hundreds of arbitration cases, and I teach University of Chicago students how to be courtroom lawyers. As an arbitrator with the Cook County Mandatory Arbitration Program for more than 20 years, I have heard hundreds of cases, often controlling the proceedings and ruling on objections as chair of the panel. I also help teach the annual Intensive Trial Practice Workshop at the University of Chicago's Mandel Legal Aid Clinic. -- I use my legal skills and energies to help others and to improve my community. A law degree comes with a responsibility to give legal assistance to those who can't afford it. Throughout my career, I have done pro bono work, currently representing homeowners in foreclosure mediations and helping pro se litigants in small claims courtrooms. For years I've volunteered in leadership positions supporting the schools, youth, arts and congregations of my community.-- The Chicago Council of Lawyers says I'm 'respected as a hard-working, knowledgeable and highly ethical? lawyer. I will be a hard-working, knowledgeable and highly ethical judge.What are your thoughts on mandatory sentencing? Do you believe judges should have greater leeway when it comes to sentencing defendants' Why or why not?Critics of mandatory sentencing argue that judges ought to be given discretion to consider mitigating factors in each individual case in deciding sentences; and that mandatory sentencing is clogging the prisons, breaking the state budget, transferring decision-making authority from judge to prosecutor, and failing to alleviate crime problems. On the other hand, proponents of mandatory sentencing argue that it has led to more uniformity in the sentences of similarly-situated defendants.As a judge, I would of course follow the sentencing guidelines I am required to follow.What are your thoughts on the use of drug courts, domestic violence courts, veterans courts, mental health courts and prostitution courts' Have they been effective?These specialized criminal courts are designed to allow the justice system to better recognize and treat the root causes of particular kinds of crimes and to offer appropriate services and counseling, rather than simply imposing a one-size-fits-all prison term. The aim is to get offenders the help they need so they can make better choices in the future. The focus is on rehabilitation, not punishment.Getting offenders the specialized help they need is not only the compassionate thing to do. By reducing recidivism, it can also save taxpayer money.Do you support eliminating the ban on cameras and recording devices in Illinois courtrooms' Why or why not?Yes, I do support eliminating the ban. Trials are public. With proper restrictions, cameras and recording devices would not be intrusive or disruptive, and could help illuminate the important functions of our justice system.