Spokane County Lawyers Rank Padden Low For Judgeship

Mike Padden’s supposedly smooth ride to the Spokane County bench just encountered heavy turbulence.

Fellow Spokane lawyers tripped the Republican legislator, rated him No. 17 on out of 21 candidates for the judgeship.

“It’s one factor, and I’m confident I can do the job,” Padden said of the county bar poll results, released Wednesday.

His surprisingly poor showing makes it difficult for county commissioners to appoint him to a vacant District Court seat without being accused of doing so for purely political reasons.

Since two out of three commissioners - Phil Harris and Steve Hasson - are Republicans, the conventional wisdom had Padden being a shoo-in for the $92,000-a-year post.

Twenty-one candidates are vying to replace Raymond Tanksley Jr., who died of cancer last month.

“We’re probably going to be lobbied to death by every lawyer and the brother-in-law of every lawyer,” joked Hasson.

The top choice of the legal profession: Clark Colwell, the county’s former chief criminal deputy prosecutor.

“It’s a vote of confidence. I’m pleased with that,” said Colwell, “but I don’t want to get my hopes up.”

That’s because Colwell, while a law-and-order conservative, is a Democrat.

The retired prosecutor didn’t fare well at the ballot box last fall, losing big to Sara Derr in a District Court race.

The 51-year-old Colwell is widely respected by Spokane lawyers, though, amassing an overall score of 4.19 out of a possible 5.0.

Ranking second at 3.97 is Harold D. Clarke III, an attorney in private practice and son of Superior Court Judge Harold Clarke.

The younger Clarke, 40, is making his first bid for public office.

Clarke, a Republican, said the bar poll should be carefully considered by commissioners.

“I hope it sends them a message that, ‘Hey, here are some qualified people. Let’s look at them,”’ he said.

Tying for third in the poll are two Spokane County assistant public defenders, Scott Mason and Gregory Sypolt, at 2.90.

Commissioners say they will do background checks with the Washington State Bar Association’s lawyer discipline unit, interview finalists and make the appointment in a few weeks.

The appointee must run in the next general election to win a full fouryear term.

In the bar poll, Spokane lawyers were asked to rate judicial candidates from 1 to 5 based on ability, temperament, integrity and experience.

Forty-eight percent of the county’s practicing bar - 443 attorneys - participated. Lawyers were asked to evaluate only the candidates with whom they were familiar.

Padden, a Spokane Valley resident, said he applied for the court seat so he could spend more time with his family.

The 48-year-old legislator, who has a private law practice, was named majority floor leader and chairman of the Law and Justice Committee this year when Republicans took control of the House.

Regarding his 17th-place finish in the bar poll, Padden said he devotes half his time to legislative matters and has taken strong stands on political issues, alienating some members of the bar.

“It’s hard to say what goes through people’s minds. I didn’t know where I would place (in the poll), but I feel the rating was positive, even if it wasn’t in the upper tier,” Padden said.

In the meantime, he is mustering high-powered support, including an endorsement from state Supreme Court Justice Richard Guy.

After reviewing the bar poll results, Hasson refused to rule out any candidates.

“Right now, everybody’s still in the running,” the commissioner said. “They all cleared the first hurdle.”

Asked if Padden’s chances have been damaged, Hasson replied: “Mike Padden, I’m sure, is a very good candidate, but he’s got to go through the same competitive process that everyone else does. And he’s got to demonstrate to us that he’s No. 1.”

Hasson said he gives an edge to candidates who previously have sought political office, which he called the “electability” factor.

Commissioners last appointed a District Court judge in December 1990, when Richard White was the choice.