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Lake Superior Court judges Natalie Bokota and Shelia Moss are retiring Dec. 31, and interviews will be held next week to help determine who should fill those vacancies.
The Lake County Judicial Nominating Commission will interview 17 applicants on Oct. 23 at the county government center in Crown Point.
Two magistrates made the list. They are Shaun Olsen and David Urbanski. Other candidates include Christopher Bruno, Anthony Pampalone and Helen Nowels as well as Senior Judge Michael Pagano and commissioners Amy Jorgensen and Karyn Price.
Candidates must be U.S. citizens, reside in Lake County and be licensed to practice law in Indiana.
After the interviews, the commission will deliberate, considering factors like the applicants’ legal education, writings, public service and reputation. It will then vote publicly.
The commission, which is chaired by Indiana Supreme Court Justice Mark Massa, will select five candidates for each of the seats, which the Marion County Judicial Selection Committee did last month as part of a search to fill its vacancies. The candidate list will then be given to Indiana Gov. Mike Braun.
Per state law, Braun will have 60 days to select two of the 10 candidates to fill the seats. If Braun passes, Chief Justice Loretta Rush will make the final decision.
The annual salary for a judge selected to fill either vacancy is $183,513.
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