District one judicial candidates made a last minute appeal Monday night to Sebastian County voters. David Saxon and Barry Neal both want the job.
“This election every vote is important,” said Neal.
“I’ve got a lot more experience than my opponent,” said Saxon.
Both candidates are licensed attorneys. Neal has 20 years of courtroom experience. He worked as a deputy prosecuting attorney. For the past 10 years he has managed his own law firm and worked as a criminal defense attorney. “It’s a different approach, a different inquiry into the law, knowledge of the law, and how to argue the cases and things like that,” said Neal.
David Saxon served as chief deputy prosecuting attorney for 10 years. He has been a judge for the past two decades. “I’ve got a lot more courtroom experience than he does,” said Saxon. “I think I’ve got a pretty good judicial temperament. I’ve got a pretty good reputation with most of the lawyers in town.”
If elected Neal says he first plans to take a hard look at the office. “Take a look at everything,” he said. “All the major aspects, the policies, the procedures of that court, see what’s working right. See what could be improved and how it could be improved,” said Neal.
Saxon says there is always room for change. “We go through a periodic review of almost every system we have,” he said. “Our next big project would be we’re getting a new computer system,” said Saxon.
Both candidates urged voters to head to the polls on Tuesday.