ROANOKE TIMES
Copyright (c) 1996, Roanoke Times
DATE: Tuesday, December 3, 1996 TAG: 9612030096
SECTION: VIRGINIA PAGE: C-4 EDITION: METRO
SOURCE: LAURENCE HAMMACK STAFF WRITER
TWO CANDIDATES HAVE BEEN ENDORSED by the local bar associations for a Circuit Court judgeship. Roanoke-area lawmakers have a decision to make.
Roanoke lawyer Jane Glenn was endorsed by her colleagues Monday for a Circuit Court judgeship, making her the second candidate for a position that will be filled next year by the General Assembly.
Glenn was endorsed by the Roanoke Bar Association. Last week, Roanoke lawyer Jonathan Apgar was endorsed by the Salem-Roanoke County Bar Association.
With the split endorsements, a final decision will rest with the General Assembly after the candidates are interviewed by the House and Senate Courts of Justice committees. Legislators from the Roanoke Valley are usually given deference in selecting judges for the 23rd Judicial Circuit, which includes Roanoke, Roanoke County and Salem.
``We have endorsed a strong candidate, Roanoke County and Salem have endorsed a strong candidate, and I don't think we can go wrong with either choice as far as the public is concerned,'' Roanoke Bar Association President Charles Cornelison said after Monday's vote.
However, the legislators could select a candidate who did not receive either group's backing. Seven lawyers and judges had expressed an interest in the position.
Other candidates were Roanoke lawyer Stan Barnhill, Roanoke General District Court Judge Vincent Lilley, Roanoke Juvenile and Domestic Relations Court Judge Joseph Bounds, and city lawyers Philip Coulter and Charles Dorsey.
The vacancy was created by the retirement of Judge G.O. Clemens, one of the valley's six Circuit Court judges. He will step down at the end of the year after 17 years on the bench.
Glenn, who said she was ``gratified and pleased'' with the endorsement, specializes in civil litigation in personal injury, product liability, insurance, medical malpractice and employment law.
She was a law clerk for U.S. District Judge Jackson Kiser, and was a partner with Gentry, Locke Rakes & Moore - Roanoke's second-largest law firm - before starting her own firm in 1991.
Apgar, who received the Salem-Roanoke County endorsement last week, served as a prosecutor and public defender for Roanoke before going into private practice.
Glenn, Apgar and Barnhill were found to be ``highly recommended'' by the Virginia Women Attorneys Association, which interviewed six of the seven candidates last week.
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