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 </figure>Age: 45When did you pass the Kansas bar? 1999Current job title and relevant prior job titles: Current job title - Regional Attorney, Department for Children and Families Prior relevant job titles: General Counsel, FHSU Private Practice Attorney Attorney with Child Support Enforcement and Court Trustee Office Managing Attorney and Attorney at Kansas Legal ServicesCommunity involvement Community involvement is important to me. I have volunteered in the community over the years from school organizations, church groups and organizations such as United Way of Ellis County, Wonder Women League and Soroptimist, among others.What experience and skills would you bring to the position? Twenty years of legal experience practicing in criminal, domestic, civil and administrative law; strong ties to Ellis County and the surrounding area; a well-rounded understanding of all aspects of the law based on the wide variety of areas of the law I have practiced in throughout my career.What are the specific aspects of this judicial position that moved you to run? The opportunity to serve my community in a useful way that best incorporates my talents and experience.Describe the ideal judge. An ideal judge is one who has broad knowledge of the law; one who isn’t afraid to do what is right regardless of what public opinion is; someone who holds the position with the utmost respect. As judge one needs to have judicial temperament, which is being courteous, respectful, levelheaded and impartial to all cases and parties. District Judge for the 23rd Judicial District is unique as they hear a wide range of cases including domestic, criminal, child in need of care, probate, oil and gas, civil litigation (including medical, injury, banking, etc.), and guardianship/conservatorships just to name a few. District judges must possess a broad knowledge of the law and have the necessary training and willingness to educate themselves in all aspects of the law as it changes with society.Describe the most challenging ethical dilemma you have encountered. How did you handle it? As an attorney, I have had individuals representing themselves on cases on the other side over the years or had hired an attorney who they were struggling communicating with regarding their case. Often, these individuals would approach me with questions needing help with their case. As adverse counsel, I was unable to advise them as requested; however, I could refer them to the Kansas Bar Association attorney referral service to seek legal advice or if needed the Office of Disciplinary Administrator to work through a complaint with an existing attorney.What do you perceive as the greatest obstacles to justice, if any? One of the greatest obstacles to justice is the lack of awareness of legal rights, services and procedures by the general public. Most people are aware if an action is wrong, but they may not be aware how that action affects their legal rights and what can be done about it. Is the action something that needs to be reported to law enforcement and worked through the criminal justice system or is it something civil that they need to seek an attorney for and work through that system? Many questions can arise as to what does this action mean for them? Does going through the criminal justice system restore them monetarily or does it serve to keep the action for occurring again? Transparency of the legal system along with education is the key to overcoming this obstacle.What do you believe are the causes of the high rates of minority incarceration? While I am not an expert in the field, minority rates of incarceration are statistically greater than incarceration rates in America. I have read the national reports regarding incarceration rates that list a wide variety of reasons for the disparaging rates of incarceration such as poverty, education, unemployment history, criminal history and biased decision making in the criminal justice system. While some of these studied factors are outside the authority of a judge when reviewing a case and ordering a sentence, I can confidently state that if elected judge, I pledge to treat everyone fairly, regardless of their race.What do you think about the growing prison population? What response should society have to prison overcrowding? As a judge, it will be my job to apply the law at sentencing in determining whether or not someone will go to prison or get probation. The status of prison overcrowding or growth is not my focus as a judge but applying the sentencing guidelines as needed and ensuring that they are applied consistently and fairly. While there are certainly options, better than prison for some people and those opportunities are oftentimes required to be explored under the law, prison does serve a purpose as well. The federal and state legislature has a duty to monitor prison populations and make public policy decisions related to that matter.As a prospective judge, what do you consider your greatest strengths? Weaknesses? I think my greatest strength is my expansive knowledge of the legal field and the ability to apply that knowledge while making decisions. My greatest weakness will be my desire to help everyone who appears in front of me and to make sure that they do better moving forward. My decisions can aid in this, but I cannot move outside applying the law to ensure that they make better choices in the future. This is the same feeling all parents have when we are preparing our children to leave home and hope we have given them all the necessary tools to move forward on their own. We can’t move with them and look over their shoulder every day, but need to trust we were clear in our teachings and move forward.Have you ever been disciplined by the bar association or the state commission on judicial conduct? I have not been disciplined by the Office of Disciplinary Administrator or the Board of Attorney Discipline.Have you ever been arrested? When and on what charges? What was the outcome? I have never been arrested.Have you ever been a principal, named litigant in a civil matter? How did it affect you? I have never been a principal, named litigant in a civil matter.Have you ever been the victim of a crime? How did it impact you (if at all) as an attorney or judge? Not that I recall. In my line of work, you learn that often times people are the victims of a relatively minor crime (e.g. having their change stolen out of their car when they left the door unlocked) and forget about it due to the relatively minimal impact the particular crime they were the victim of had on their life. For this reason, I don’t want to say absolutely not, but I don’t believe I have been a victim of a crime.

CANDIDATE PROFILE Judge 23rd District: Kerry Wasinger