news-record.com

The most interesting, least publicized race on next week's primary ballot matches a Court of Appeals incumbent against three challengers.

Rick Elmore practiced law in Greensboro for 20 years before he was elected to the Court of Appeals as a Republican in 2002. That was the last partisan election for judges in North Carolina.

The change to nonpartisan elections was good for the courts, but it didn't erase partisanship from judicial campaigns. In this contest, the N.C. Republican Party supports Elmore and Steven Walker; the N.C. Democratic Party backs Leto Copeley and Alton "Al" D. Bain.

The two leaders in the primary will face each other in the general election.

Fortunately, judges rarely conduct themselves in a partisan manner on the bench. And most judicial candidates observe the custom of refusing to discuss contested issues because staking out positions could prejudice their views on cases. That usually makes for quiet campaigns.

In this one, though, Elmore's "Republican" opponent has aggressively challenged him from the right.

"I have significant ideological differences with Judge Elmore," Walker told me last week. "I am the only conservative in the race."

On his website, Walker declares he is "a follower of Christ first." In addition to his legal job, he is the pastor of a Baptist church in Selma. He says he's a member of the National Rifle Association and has a concealed carry permit. He told me he's drawing support from tea party members, evangelicals and "strong conservatives."

Elmore, he said, "was a very creative criminal defense lawyer" in private practice and, on the bench, "reverts back to being a very creative defense attorney." He cited two cases, one dealing with drug possession and the other involving sexual acts between minors, that he said showed Elmore's liberal interpretation of the law.

Walker has watched Elmore's work from his position as clerk to Supreme Court Justice Ed Brady for the past five years. The trouble is, that is the sum of Walker's legal practice. He completed law school at Campbell University in 2005. He has never had a legal client except, in effect, Brady. While he certainly has seen the criminal-justice system from the top, he has no other view of it. Nor has he made any decisions of his own.

Furthermore, his characterization of Elmore doesn't hold up, according to observers who say Elmore has been a hardworking, mainstream judge. By his own count, Elmore has participated in 2,400 decisions and written about 800 opinions.

Elmore stands by his decisions in the two cases Walker cited and said the "defense attorney" criticism "just doesn't hold water."

"To pull two or three cases out of 2,400 is basically his only platform because he's a law clerk ... who's never been in court as a practicing attorney," Elmore said of Walker.

Deserving of more consideration are Copeley and Bain, both experienced and respected lawyers. Elmore called them "excellent attorneys," adding wryly: "I hope they continue in their attorney practices."

Although he's a Democrat, Bain -- who's from Lillington -- pointedly claims support from former judges of both parties and declines to cast any criticism at Elmore. "I'm not against anybody," he said. "I'm giving voters a choice."

Bain promises to bring impartiality to the job, and said his practice in many fields of law -- juvenile, family, criminal, tax, elder issues -- distinguishes him from others who have been elected to the court. "What you look for in a judge is someone who's going to be fair, knowledgeable and capable, as demonstrated by his practice, his career, a good legal mind, who's sensible in applying the law," he said.

Copeley, who lives in Hillsborough, is a 1983 graduate of Harvard Law School, working her way through by waiting tables, cleaning houses and other odd jobs, she says.

Her practice now is mostly in workers' compensation and injury cases, with less experience in criminal law.

She decided to run against Elmore, as opposed to any other judge, she said, because it was his seat "where I thought I could make a contribution to the court." One of her strengths, she added, would be writing clear, concise opinions -- an area where she says Elmore sometimes falls short.

Two sitting judges Copeley says she admires are Sanford Steelman and Martha Geer -- a Republican and a Democrat -- because they leave politics out of the courtroom.

Ideology, Elmore said, "doesn't come into play on our court."

Voters should not let it.