Two Whatcom judge races are on the primary ballot. Here’s what you need to know
Whatcom County residents will vote to elect two Whatcom County Superior Court judges this year.
Superior Court judges handle criminal, civil and appeals cases. It is the highest county court, before reaching a state appeals court.
The Washington state primary election is Aug. 4, and it’s a “top two” primary, which means that the two candidates with the most votes advance to the November general election, regardless of party. However, judicial positions are non-partisan.
Judge Deborra Garrett is not running for reelection for position 2. James Erb, Evan Jones and Lisa M. Keeler are running for Garrett’s position.
Judge David Freeman is running to retain his position 4 as judge against Carl Munson Jr. and Jim Nelson.
Freeman was appointed by Gov. Jay Inslee in January of this year after Inslee appointed former Whatcom County Superior Court Judge Raquel Montoya-Lewis to the Washington State Supreme Court.
Judges Rob Olson and Lee Grochmal are unopposed and will not appear on the primary or general election ballot. Olson was appointed by Inslee in August 2018 to position 1 to replace the late Judge Ira J. Uhrig who died in May 2018 from complications from lymphoma. Grochmal was appointed by Inslee in February 2019 after Judge Charles R. Snyder retired from position 3 at the end of February 2019.
Here’s what voters need to know about the Whatcom County Superior Court judicial candidates for position 2:
Evan Jones
Jones grew up in the Columbia neighborhood of Bellingham and now lives in Lynden with his wife and children. He graduated from Western Washington University and teaches constitutional law at Whatcom Community College. Jones has worked in every court in the county, getting his start in the Bellingham City Attorney’s office, and then advanced through the Whatcom County court system, working in district, juvenile and superior court systems.
Jones also has experience in handling private civil matters, such as business disputes, estate planning and environmental litigation. He currently works in the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney’s office.
He has been endorsed by current Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney Eric J. Richey, former longtime Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney David McEachran, Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo, District Court judges Matt Elich and Dave Grant, Lynden Police Chief Steve Taylor, Whatcom County Council member Barry Buchanan and both the Bellingham Police and Blaine Police Guilds.
As of July 23, Jones has raised $16,133 and has spent $13,792, according to the Washington State Public Disclosure Commission.
James Erb
Erb lives in Bellingham with his wife, their two children and their dog. Erb currently works as a senior assistant city attorney in Bellingham, where he provides legal advice to the mayor of Bellingham and the city’s leadership, and handles civil cases. Erb also has experience as a former attorney for the Nooksack Indian Tribe, and as a prosecuting attorney.
Erb has volunteered to coach the Sehome High School Mock Trial team and judges student mock trial competitions at the Center for Law, Diversity and Justice at Fairhaven College.
Erb is rated as well-qualified by the Latina/o Bar Association of Washington, Joint Asian Judicial Evaluations Committee, LGBTQ+ Bar Association (QLaw), the Washington State Veterans Bar Association and is rated as qualified by the Loren Miller Bar Association, Washington Women Lawyers and the Whatcom County Bar Association.
Erb is endorsed by Washington State Supreme Court Justice Raquel Montoya-Lewis, Washington Court of Appeals Judge Cecily C. Hazelrigg, Washington State 40th District Senator Liz Lovelett, Washington State 40th District Rep. Alex Ramel, Bellingham City Council members Lisa Anderson, Daniel Hammill, Hollie Huthman, Gene Knutson, Hannah Stone, and Pinky Vargas, Whatcom County Council member Rud Browne, former Bellingham Mayor Kelli Linville, Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu and the Whatcom Democrats.
As of July 23, Erb has raised $20,905 and has spent $13,792, according to the state public disclosure commission.
Lisa Keeler
Keeler has spent her career practicing law in Whatcom County. She currently works in private practice with Carmichael Clark. Keeler also serves as an arbitrator and pro tem commissioner for Whatcom County Superior Court and prosecutes misdemeanor cases for Lynden as needed.
She has previous experience as an assistant attorney general with the state Attorney General’s office. Keeler has also appeared in or assisted on cases before multiple county courts across the state and legislative bodies, such as the Pollution Control Hearings Board and Office of Administrative Hearings.
Keeler graduated from Gonzaga University and Gonzaga University School of Law. She is involved with Washington Women Lawyers, LAW Advocates, and Whatcom County National Adoption Day.
Keeler is endorsed by Washington State Supreme Court Chief Justice Debra L. Stephens, Washington State 42nd Rep. Sharon Shewmake, Nooksack Indian Tribe, Kellen Kooistra, a prosecuting attorney in the Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office, and Mamie Lackie, an attorney in the Whatcom County Public Defender’s Office.
Keeler was rated exceptionally well qualified by Washington Women Lawyers, well qualified by the Joint Asian Judicial Evaluations Committee, the Latino/a Bar Association of Washington, QLaw Association of Washington and qualified by the Whatcom County Bar Association.
As of July 23, Keeler has raised $8,756 and has spent $3,577, according to the state public disclosure commission.
Here’s what voters need to know about the Whatcom County Superior Court judicial candidates for position 4:
David Freeman
Freeman has lived in Whatcom County for nearly two decades and was appointed to the Whatcom County Superior Court in 2020.
Freeman has past experience as a deputy prosecuting attorney for Whatcom County, a volunteer guardian ad litem in child dependency cases, an administrative review law judge at the state level, and was selected by local judges to serve as a pro tem judge in every municipality in Whatcom County, including as a commissioner for Whatcom County Superior Court. He also served on the board of directors for a local nonprofit battling homelessness.
Freeman is endorsed by Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood, Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney Eric Richey, former longtime Whatcom County Prosecuting Attorney David McEachran, Washington State Supreme Court Justice Raquel Montoya-Lewis, the three other Superior Court Judges — Lee Grochmal, Rob Olson, and Deborra Garrett, Whatcom County Superior Court Commissioners Alfred Heydrich, Leon Henley and Angela Cuevas, Whatcom County Sheriff Bill Elfo, Sumas Police Chief Daniel DeBruin, Bellingham Police Guild and Bellingham City Council members Hannah Stone and Gene Knutson.
Freeman was rated exceptionally well qualified by the Whatcom County Bar Association, the Loren Miller Bar Association, the Cardozo Society of Washington, the Latina/o Bar Association of Washington, QLaw Association of Washington and was rated well qualified by the Joint Asian Judicial Evaluations Committee.
As of July 23, Freeman has raised $24,273 and has spent $16,283, according to the state public disclosure commission.
Carl Munson Jr.
Munson has lived in Whatcom County with his wife and two children for nearly 20 years. He has been a practicing attorney for more than 23 years, spending the past 15 working as a criminal defense attorney, which includes handling conflict cases from the county public defender’s office.
Munson has previous experience working as a deputy prosecuting attorney in Yakima and Whatcom counties, as a tribal defender in Nooksack Tribal Court, as a civil attorney, and as a judge pro tem.
Munson volunteers with Toys for Tots, and recently became a volunteer substitute driver for the Whatcom Council on Aging Meals on Wheels Program during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Because judicial races are nonpartisan, Munson has not sought the endorsement of either political party. Munson is endorsed by judges, attorneys, teachers, and small business owners. On his campaign website, their names, but not their job titles, are listed.
As of July 23, Munson has raised $6,560 and has spent $6,181, according to the state public disclosure commission.
Jim Nelson
Nelson has more than 31 years of experience as a lawyer across the state. He has worked as a prosecutor in Mount Vernon and Snohomish and Skagit counties.
Nelson has also worked with the Skagit County Public Defender’s Office, as a contract attorney for child dependency cases, as a private-practice attorney, and represented the city of Burlington in the United States Supreme Court.
Nelson is a former Marine who was honorably discharged in 1973 and was formerly a respiratory therapist.
Nelson lists more than two dozen supporters on his website. As of July 23, he has raised $9,801 and has spent $9,801, according to the state public disclosure commission.
Watch the candidates: The League of Women Voters forum’s for judicial races are available online at lwvbellinghamwhatcom.org/2020-election-forums.
