She had a family court case. But does newly elected judge have the necessary experience?

Newly elected Div. 5 Family Court Judge Jessica Stone reminded voters many times during her campaign about her status as a single mom with experience in Family Court.

During the Family Court Judicial Candidate Forum last month, Stone said, “I have been a litigant in the system and I know what can go wrong.” Stone's pursuit of the bench was personal. Her campaign was built on that experience. But is that enough?

Jefferson County uses a case management process for Family Court that distinguishes it from other trial courts. The “One Family, One Judge, One Court” approach, allows cases to be presented in a single court. The same judge hears all matters involving a particular family. Judges must have a diverse understanding of judicial matters that intersect with families as defined by KRS 23A.100 and 23A.110.

Stone's experience is valid but what happens in Family Court involves so much more than any one personal divorce can entail. I wanted to know more about her experience and her past criticisms of the court system. I also hoped to get to know the person voters elected into this vital position in our community, understanding that Family Court grapples with many gaps in services.

Is Jessica Stone’s experience in family court enough?

Other than representing herself in her divorce and domestic violence order, Stone also volunteered for the Legal Aid Society of Louisville and handled over 100 domestic violence order hearing assignments pro bono according to her campaign website. For this work, Legal Aid Society named her one of their Outstanding Volunteer Attorneys in 2015, the same year she divorced her abusive husband.

Stone became Jefferson County Assistant County Attorney in the Criminal Division in 2017 and works mainly in District Court.

Family Court is familiar to Stone. She actually appeared before Judge Tara Hagerty who retired from Div. 5 on June 1 for medical reasons. It is the very courtroom Stone will now oversee.

“She heard my DVO [domestic violence order] case,” Stone told me on the phone. Hagerty presided over Stone’s divorce as well as the post-divorce litigation that Stone says has “carried on for a few years.”

But that familiarity does not equal expertise. Most of Stone's experience is from District Court which is where she first sought the bench in 2022 but lost to Karen Faulkner.

My day in family court: The foster children my mother died helping.

Stone has been critical of court operations

During the candidate forum, Stone described her experience as being “drug through the family court system.” On the phone, she went so far as to say that court proceedings are “embarrassing” to her profession. And the failures she sees are not just in Family Court but across the board. “I see stuff fall through the cracks all the time,” she said, “And that's not any one person's fault.” But Stone feels that judges hold more responsibility than prosecutors and other courtroom professionals. That’s where her desire to be a judge stems from. “I don't think I ever wanted to be a judge until practicing in court,” she said, “and, you know, just seeing… I can… I don’t want to say I can do this better, but I can do this better.”

After campaigning by calling out what she feels is wrong with our judicial system, Stone is now going to have to find her way as a judge with the help from the very judges in that system she's spent months openly criticizing. But Stone is hoping she won't get pushback from her new colleagues. "I know that they do as best they can," she said, "but I think you always know that there are problems." She hopes her fellow judges see her motivation as a positive. "I want to help," she said.

Were there any judges who have inspired Jessica Stone in Jefferson County?

Yes, and Judge Hagerty is one of them. "I really do hope that Judge Hagerty knows I'm not talking about her when I'm saying all these bad things about the system," Stone said. She felt that Hagerty was knowledgeable and had a way with people. “and her demeanor on the bench was just so great, the way she handled, specifically, my case.”

I asked Hagerty on the phone for her thoughts about Stone winning the election, ”I wish her well," she said, "because it's a very important job that has an impact on so many people.” But Hagerty also pointed out that Stone's lack of experience in Family Court is “very concerning.”

Hagerty spent more than 20 years in the family law world before running for judge. And during her time as a prosecutor, she specialized in child abuse and neglect. Experience in the court you wish to serve as judge is valuable. It's uncommon for a new judge to lack extensive, specialized experience in the court they wish to serve, but it's not unprecedented.

Kids are in crisis: Services are collapsing. What's a Family Court judge supposed to do?

“But I wish her well,” Hagerty told me again, “And I hope she's able to rise to the occasion.”

Chief Judge Christine Ward has already reached out to Stone to make a plan for her transition to the bench. She will shadow existing judges, her learning curve is steep. Family Court judges are a tight-knit group that listens and supports one another. “These are all good things I've heard so far,” said Stone, “So I'm excited to get in there and make friends and share my ideas.”

Stone is definitely motivated. “I'm somebody that's been through it," she said, "and you can't really take that away from me, because I've been there.”

When Judge Jessica Stone takes the bench, I hope she does bring ideas for improvement and change. But I also hope she offers the court her humility and willingness to learn. The community needs her to succeed.

Bonnie Jean Feldkamp is the opinion editor. She can be reached via email at BFeldkamp@Gannett.com or on social media @WriterBonnie.

This article originally appeared on Louisville Courier Journal: Family Court Judge Jessica Stone brings personal experience to bench