Maricopa County voters will weigh in on only one countywide race this year: clerk of the Superior Court.
It’s not a flashy or well-known position, but the duties the clerk oversees are vital to the justice system.
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The office is responsible for keeping records of court cases, making those records available, providing marriage licenses, distributing money owed to crime victims and a multitude of other administrative duties that keep the court system operating.
The office has more than 700 employees and a nearly $40 million budget.
The former clerk, Michael Jeanes, held the position since 1999, but retired in March.
Gov. Doug Ducey selected Chris DeRose as the interim clerk until the election. DeRose lost in the Republican primary.
Although the role is administrative in nature, the Arizona Constitution establishes it as an elected position.
Here’s a look at each candidate in the race:
Jeff Fine (Republican)
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Fine has spent the majority of his professional life in and around the court systems of Arizona.
After serving as an active-duty member of the Air Force, he became a police officer in Goodyear.
The growing city was looking for an officer to handle enforcement in the city court, so he became the court marshal and, years later, was asked to take over as the court administrator for another 11 years.
In 2010, he ran for justice of the peace in the southwest Valley and won. When he was running for re-election, a position opened up in Maricopa County and he decided to apply to be the court administrator for the county justice courts.
He’s been in that role since 2014, but retired this fall. During his time at the helm, he implemented innovative strategies to improve services, he said.
When he started, most people who were arrested on a warrant (for non-violent offenses such as driving on a suspended license, missing court dates or failing to pay a fine) had to spend 10 days in jail before a judge could see them.
Fine implemented a video appearance room in 2016, which allowed judges to see more offenders without having to transport them great distances. The system reduced the time people spent in jail by more than 50 percent, Fine said.
His office is also implementing a text reminder system that alerts people the day before they need to appear in court. Other cities that have adopted similar programs have seen steep reductions in missed court dates, Fine said.
Fine said Maricopa County justice courts experienced similar troubles as the Maricopa County Superior Court with clerks leaving because of pay. He said he got rid of some vacant positions and bumped clerk pay last year, which he said resulted in less turnover.
“My goal is to make the court more efficient and easier to use by leveraging proven technologies and implementing best practices,” he said.
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Fine said he has no political ambitions beyond the clerk’s office.
Roberta Neil Miller (Democrat)
Miller spent her career as a prosecuting attorney for superior, municipal and justice courts in Maricopa and Pinal counties.
Most recently, she was a deputy county attorney in Maricopa County, specializing in property-tax and eminent-domain cases in the Superior Court.
She retired in October, but decided to run for clerk after Jeanes retired and DeRose was appointed.
Miller said she worried that DeRose would politicize the office or use it as a catalyst for his future political career.
“The office is too important to be used that way,” she said, adding that she would like to see the office become nonpartisan.
Miller said one of her top priorities as clerk would be making sure crime victims receive the restitution they deserve. The Superior Court has millions of dollars in unclaimed restitution.
“It’s very important and justice is not completed in those cases until crime victims receive the money they’re entitled to under the law,” she said.
She also wants to improve access to make it easier for all people to interact with the court system seamlessly.
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- azcentral.com 2018 Voters Guide
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