LYNNWOOD — A veteran judge is being challenged by a former deputy prosecutor for his seat on the bench in South District Court.
Jeffrey Goodwin touted his experience, including 10 years on the bench and his involvement in establishing the county’s mental health court.
Brett Nagle said it’s time for a change and he’s ready to fix “an atmosphere of hostility and distrust.”
Goodwin disputes his opponent’s claims, pointing to his endorsements from multiple local police unions, including the Washington State Patrol Troopers Association.
“I am a judge who is supported by folks who care about public safety,” Goodwin said.
Nagle said his endorsements from Snohomish County Prosecuting Attorney Mark Roe and Snohomish County Public Defender Association Director Bill Jaquette are proof that “both sides are saying a change is needed.”
“We’ve got both sides saying they’re not getting a fair trial down there,” Nagle said.
Nagle was the favorite in the Snohomish County Bar Association’s poll, with less than 20 percent of the association’s members casting a vote.
Goodwin called his opponent’s claims “inaccurate.”
“I don’t know who he’s talking to,” Goodwin said. “I think if you look at my record the vast majority of the time my rulings are affirmed by the Superior Court.”
Each year more than 70,000 cases are handled by the county’s four district courts, including criminal misdemeanors, small claims, traffic tickets and names changes. The south division is located in Lynnwood.
The judge’s job pays $148,881 a year. It is a four-year term.
Goodwin, 52, earned his law degree from Seattle University. He opened his own practice in Snohomish County in 1995. He became the city prosecutor for Edmonds. He partnered with another lawyer and together they were the prosecutors for multiple cities, including Lynnwood, Lake Stevens and Arlington. Goodwin was appointed to the South District Court bench in 2004.
Goodwin said he’s been active in criminal justice boards in the county and around the state. He is most proud of his involvement in helping establish the county’s mental health court. He supports expanding the court with the possibility of including participants referred from municipal courts.
Goodwin said he has experience working behind the scenes on court budgets and long-term planning. He said he supports exploring efficiencies and whether it is necessary to send prosecutors and defense attorneys to all four different district courts, or if there is a better way to do business. He also said the courts need to work on improving technology.
“I have a plan where the district courts need to go in the next 10 years. I absolutely have a passion for what I do,” Goodwin said.
Goodwin is married with children and lives in Bothell.
Nagle, 39, grew up in Snohomish County and went to law school at Willamette University College of Law in Oregon. He lives in Mill Creek.
He was a Snohomish County deputy prosecutor from 2001 to 2004. He was in-house counsel for an insurance company for a year. In 2005, he opened his own practice, specializing in criminal defense and civil litigation. He began filling in for district court judges in 2004.
Nagle said he would like to expand and improve the court’s electronic home monitoring program — an alternative to jail — by implementing a sliding scale so more people can afford the costs. Improved technology could better track whether offenders are consuming alcohol, he said. Nagle said it could help control jail costs.
As long as people are willing to get help it may be a better option, Nagle said.
“It’s still not for everyone,” he said. However, locking someone up for eight or nine months and then releasing them with the same problem is not a great service, he said.
“We can only do so much to protect people if we’re just warehousing them,” Nagle said.
Nagle said he believes the judges need to share more of the workload when it comes to responding to reviewing search warrant applications by police officers after hours.
“We need to do better and that’s why I’m getting off the sidelines to do it,” Nagle said.
Name: Jeffrey Goodwin
Age: 52
Experience: South District Court judge, city prosecutor and private attorney
Website: www.judgejeffreygoodwin.com
Name: Brett Nagle
Age: 39
Experience: Private attorney, pro-tem judge and Snohomish County deputy prosecutor
Website: www.nagleforjudge.com
Diana Hefley: 425-339-3463; hefley@heraldnet.com. Twitter: @dianahefley
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