MONTICELLO, NY — Sullivan County District Attorney Jim Farrell announced on February 13 that he will run for the office County Court Judge, which is currently held by Frank LaBuda. LaBuda has reached the age of 70, which is the mandatory retirement age for judges in New York, and he will step down at the end of the year.

Farrell, who has been the district attorney since 2010, announced his run in the lobby of the government center. “The County Court is a trial court and it has exclusive jurisdiction over serious crimes that are committed in our county and the presiding judge must be experienced in the rules of evidence, the criminal procedure law, jury trial practice and procedure, search and seizure law, Constitutional law, grand jury practice and procedure and the New York Penal Law.  Without experience in these critical legal areas the Court will struggle to provide justice to the people of Sullivan County.  I have spent my whole career and professional life as a prosecutor practicing in these specific and specialized areas of the criminal law,” he said.

 Farrell is a Republican, and is being challenged by Democrat Cynthia Dolan, a lawyer and a Mamakating Town Justice.

 Bill Liblick, chair of the Town of Liberty Democratic Committee, wrote an analysis of this and other races in the county (tinyurl.com/y66tukoe.)

Specifically about the race for judge he wrote, “A run from Dolan for County Court Judge could in all probability harm the rest of the Democratic ticket being that Farrell is so well known, popular, and is an outstanding candidate for the position.” He accused Dolan’s supporters of “pushing Dolan due to their own political agendas, while others see and understand political reality.”