StateCollege.com editor Geoff Rushton conducted interviews hosted by C-NET with candidates for several offices on local ballots in the Nov. 7 municipal election.
THE ELECTION
Democratic nominee Brian Marshall and Republican nominee Ron McGlaughlin are on the ballot for Centre County Court of Common Pleas judge. In the May primary, both candidates were cross-filed. Marshall won the Democratic nomination with 62.25 percent of the vote, and McGlaughlin took the Republican nomination with 65 percent of the vote.
The court consists of four judges who are elected to 10 year terms and are employees of the state. Judge Pamela Ruest, who was sworn in as president judge in September, is on the ballot separately for retention.
THE CANDIDATES
• Brian K. Marshall, of Patton Township, has been a practicing attorney for the past 16 years, spending most of his career with the firm of Centre County firm of Miller, Kistler & Campbell, where he is a shareholder and partner. His practice areas include civil and criminal law, with his recent focus being on family law. Marshall is a Certified Divorce Financial Analyst, a trained mediator and current president of the Centre County Bar Association.
Marshall earned a bachelor’s degree in accounting from Penn State in 1996 and went on to hold a Certified Public Accountant’s license in Maryland. He received his law degree from Penn State Dickinson School of Law in 2001.
• Ronald S. McGlaughlin, of Harris Township, has been a practicing attorney for more than 30 years, and is a shareholder in the Centre County law firm of Stover McLaughlin, P.C., which has offices in State College and Bellefonte. His practice areas include business and corporate law, criminal law, family law, real estate, and wills and estates. He is a past president of the Centre County Bar Association.
McGlaughlin graduated from Susquehanna University in 1981 and earned his law degree from Ohio Northern Law School in 1984. He has lived and practiced law in the State College area since 1987.
THE ISSUES
In their C-NET interviews, Marshall and McGlaughlin discuss their experience and qualifications; how they view the role of county judge in the courtroom and the community; the soon-to-be-implemented drug court; sentencing; the most challenging cases they expect to oversee; family law and domestic relations; recusal; impartiality; and decision-making processes for complex cases.
Watch the interviews with Marshall and McGlaughlin below.
