League of Women Voters of Blount County 2006 Candidate Survey

Name

WILLIAM TERRY DENTON

Candidate for General Sessions Court Judge, Section II (Juvenile Court)

Please write your answers in the space provided or use a separate sheet, and return your survey in the enclosed stamped envelope. It is very important that you write legibly. Please consider e-mailing your completed survey by requesting an electronic survey at rderycke@bellsouth.net

The League of Women Voters will acknowledge receipt of your completed survey.

I. Qualifications and experience:

A. Please list your diplomas and degrees, along with the areas of study.

Bachelor of Science Degree in Business Administration/Accounting - Tennessee Technological University, 1968.

Doctorate of Jurisprudence (Law) -University of Tennessee, 1971.

B. What relevant experience do you have, including previous public offices held?

· Auditor for the State of Tennessee (County Audit Division) - 1968

· Private practice of law - 1972-1979. (Only currently known Blount County lawyer to have actually argued a case before the United States Supreme Court - 1976).

· Admitted to practice before all State of Tennessee Courts, Federal District Courts, Federal Courts of Appeal and the United States Supreme Court.

· General Sessions Court Judge, Section II, March 1979 until current date.

· Over 1000+hours of continuing legal educational.

· Served two (2) terms as the Vice-President of the Tennessee General Sessions Judges Conference.

· Only Juvenile Court Judge to be elected to serve two (2) consecutive terms as President of the Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.

· Served one (1) year as Vice-President of the Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.

· Served four (4) years on the Executive Committee of the Tennessee Council of Juvenile and Family Court Judges.

· Served as a Judicial Ethic Instructor for the Tennessee General Sessions Judges Conference.

· Instrumental in the creation and operation of the first Juvenile Drug Court in the State of Tennessee.

C. Please list local service and civic groups in which you have participated, including when and for how long.

Blount County Arthritis Foundation Chairperson - 1974-1976.

President of Blount County Big Brothers/Big Sisters - 4 years.

Served on the Blount County Rescue Squad Board of Directors - 2 years.

Leader of Blount County Law Explorer Post - 2 years.

Blount County Bar Association - 1972-present.

Tennessee Bar Association - 1972-1979.

Member of Overlook Mental Health Centers Board of Directors - 4 years.

D. Please indicate any business activities that could constitute a conflict of interest in the event you are elected.

None.

E. Name three leadership skills that you practice.

1. Always remember that the position I occupy belongs to the Citizens of Blount County and has only been entrusted to me and constantly carries with it an obligation and duty to provide justice and appropriate services to the people in a timely, fair, impartial and unbiased manner.

2. Lead by example at all times and in every respect.

3. Continuously strive to gain new knowledge and experience and opportunities to better serve the citizens of Blount County and improve the delivery of services through the Blount County Juvenile Court.

F. What unique qualities, besides the above leadership skills, do you have to contribute to this office?

While all of the foregoing leadership skills should be applicable to each and every judge and should clearly reflect their particular attitude, it is my belief that I daily endorse these principles and continuously hold out the hope and desire that I can make a positive impact on our community and those citizens appearing before the Blount County Juvenile Court.

II. Questions about your understanding of the office you are seeking:

A. What do you see as the three most important functions of this office?

1. The timely, fair, impartial and unbiased resolution of all disputes appearing before the Blount County Juvenile Court.

2. Fashioning disposition in cases that provide the greatest potential for a consistent and on-going positive resolution of the disputes and serves the best interest of the litigants and other citizens of Blount County.

3. Consistently instilling in the citizens of Blount County the confidence that the Blount County Juvenile Court will treat each individual case based on its particular merits with an attitude of applying the applicable law to the particular facts and circumstances to each case without an inappropriate consideration of any type of bias or prejudice, but based solely on fairness, impartiality and consistency.

B. What would you identify as the three most important issues facing Blount County in the future?

1. (See attached statement regarding Judge’s statements on Questionnaires)

2. _________________________________________________________

3.__________________________________________________________

C. What can you do in this office to impact these three most important issues?

(See attached statement)

III. Positions on specific issues of importance in Blount County: Use a separate sheet to respond.

A. Means for insuring the fair and respectful treatment of all Blount County citizens, regardless of race, gender, religion or ethnic background, given recent concerns about racism and bigotry in our county

B. Promotion of greater diversity in our hired and appointed government officials and employees

C. Reconciling the potentially competing interests of growth/development and adequate infrastructure in our county, including the application of the Hunter Growth Strategy

D. The environmental impact of development and/or non-attainment status with the EPA

E. Identifying and resolving conflicts of interest of public officials

F. The consolidation of:

1. city and county schools

2. City and county government

3. or a feasibility study on consolidation

G. Health care

(See attached statement)

IV. Questions for CANDIDATES FOR JUDGE: Use a separate sheet to answer these questions.

A. How can a judge improve the safety and security of Blount County citizens?

By applying the applicable law to the individual facts in each case in a fair, impartial, unbiased, and consistent manner. It is the primary responsibility of the various law enforcement agencies within Blount County to provide for the safety and security of the citizens. The Blount County Juvenile Court continuously works with the Blount County Sheriff's Department, County Mayor's office and the Blount County Commission to provide an appropriate level of protection and security for all citizens and staff appearing in this Court. Cannon 3B (3), of the Code of Judicial Conduct, states: "A judge shall require order and decorum in proceedings before the judge."

(otherwise, see attached statement)

B. What can be done to ensure the safety of and respect for victims of domestic violence or other crimes in your court?

Again, by applying the applicable law to the individual facts of each particular case in a fair, impartial, unbiased, and consistent manner. It is widely known that domestic violence is primarily a learned negative trait. Therefore, it is incumbent on all citizens to diligently seek to bring about a halt to this vicious cycle of inappropriate behavior. However, the focus is on the legislative branch of our government to enact laws which will most adequately address these issues and allow the courts greater authority in this arena.

(Otherwise, see attached statement)

JOINT STATEMENT OF INCUMBENT JUDGES

Blount County Judges, W. Dale Young, D. Kelly Thomas, Jr., William R. Brewer, Jr., William Terry Denton, and David R. Duggan, have issued a joint statement pertaining to response to questionnaires which solicit the Judges’ opinions on political and legal issues.

The Judges have stated that while they understand the desire of voters to be informed and to know where candidates stand on given issues, pursuant to Canon 5 of the Code of Judicial Conduct, candidates for judicial office are directed not to make pledges or promises of conduct in office other than the faithful and impartial performance of the duties of the office, and further they are instructed not to make statements that commit or appear to commit the candidate with respect to cases, controversies or issues that are likely to come before the court.

The Judges have noted that their personal opinions about issues should never enter into their decisions, but rather they have the duty to fairly and impartially apply the law that is made by others, be it legislators or other policymakers.

Accordingly, the Judges have indicated that in responding to any tendered questionnaires, and with respect to solicitation of their opinions on legal and political issues, the Judges will respectfully decline to publicly respond to such inquiries.

In issuing this statement, the Judges acknowledge the ruling of the United States Supreme Court in Republican Party of Minnesota v. White, which opinion holds that ethical prohibitions against a candidate for judicial office stating his or her positions on political and legal issues are unconstitutional under the First Amendment.

In response to that opinion, however, the Tennessee Supreme Court has issued an Order which nevertheless declines to make any changes in the express provisions of Canon 5. Rather, the Tennessee Supreme Court has only adopted a new Comment upon that Canon. While the Court has acknowledged the White decision, it then reiterates that “Some speech restrictions are indispensable to maintaining the integrity, impartiality and independence of the judiciary,” and “The State has a compelling interest in enforcing these restrictions.” Second, the Comment specifically addresses the receipt of questionnaires and warns judicial candidates to proceed with “caution” if those candidates “choose” to answer. Third, the Comment warns candidates that to take positions on issues “might constitute pledges, promises or commitments,” which prohibition specifically was not addressed by the U.S. Supreme Court in White.

With respect to the latter component of the new Comment, it is noted that the U.S. Supreme Court, in White, has specifically held that, “there is almost no legal or political issue that is unlikely to come before a judge of an American court, state or federal, of general jurisdiction.”