By Keith Knepp
InkFreeNews

Editor’s Note: With the start of early voting for the May 7 primary election set to begin on Tuesday, April 9, InkFreeNews is beginning a series of previews for contested races in Kosciusko County.

The first preview features the Republican race for Kosciusko County Circuit Court Judge. The candidates are attorneys Jack C. Birch, Syracuse, and Matthew J. Buehler, Warsaw. The open seat on the bench will be vacated by retiring Judge Michael W. Reed.

Jack C. Birch

An attorney with more than 30 plus years of experience practicing law in Kosciusko County, Burch, who has a law office in Syracuse, represents business and individual clients in all types of transactions, real estate, civil litigation and criminal defense. Throughout his career, Birch has served as judge pro tempore in Kosciusko County Courts on many occasions. Birch is also a registered civil and family mediator for both city and family law.

Matthew J. Buehler

Currently a deputy prosecutor in the Kosciusko County Prosecutor’s Office, Buehler has been practicing law in his hometown of Warsaw for more than 10 years. Before joining the prosecutor’s office in 2019, Buehler was in private practice in Warsaw. During that time, he served as a public defender in all four criminal courts in Kosciusko County.

Questionnaire

Both candidates were asked identical questions. They were afforded up to 300 words per answer. Here are their responses:

1. Following the state’s sentencing guidelines, do you feel repeat criminals should serve their full time with no probation?

Birch — “With respect to sentencing guidelines and repeat offenders, it is important to recognize the Indiana Sentencing Guidelines have been developed, adopted and revised over many years. The legislature created guidelines to provide judges with a framework within which to craft appropriate sentences for each particular case, offender and circumstance. I understand the sentiment that would call for no probation for repeat offenders. However, it would be improper for me to try to make a blanket statement about case outcomes or outcomes for categories of cases.

“As judge, I would weigh mitigating and aggravating factors, and evaluate each specific defendant’s likelihood for positive response to future rehabilitative efforts, including that person’s past success or failure in such efforts. There certainly may be cases in which a term of probation would not be appropriate, but there is no ‘cookie cutter‘ solution to sentencing.”

Buehler — “As a deputy prosecutor, I have always advocated for strong penalties to ensure justice and the safety of our community and I will continue to do so as judge of the Kosciusko County Circuit Court. Probation is not a gift to an offender as much as it is an essential tool to rehabilitate an offender prior to their reintegration into our community. Each criminal case is unique and should always be evaluated as such when determining what penalties to impose as part of any sentence.”

2. What should a judge look at when issuing sentences.

Birch — “The Indiana Criminal Code sets out a long list of factors a judge is required to consider when determining an appropriate sentence for a particular case. Part of my role as a criminal trial attorney has been to provide the sentencing court with an evaluation of those factors from my client’s perspective in the same manner the attorney for the state argues for the state’s perspective.

“Over the course of my 33 years practicing law in this county, I have had the opportunity to work through those factors more times than I care to remember. In general, these sentencing factors consider the severity of the crime, its impact on victims and society, the offender’s prior involvement in the criminal justice system, the extent of success or failure in previous efforts at rehabilitation, including a frank evaluation of the individual’s desire to reform.

“My role as Circuit Court Judge would be to fashion a sentence that appropriately punishes criminal actions, provides restitution to victims whenever possible, protects the public from future criminal acts and offer tools that may be available to allow willing defendants the opportunity for rehabilitation.”

Buehler — “The chief consideration when determining a sentence for an offender is always the safety of the community. During my time as a deputy prosecutor, I have worked closely with the law enforcement agencies of this county to conduct investigations and appropriately penalize criminal offenders. If elected, I will continue to focus on community safety and the rehabilitation of offenders when crafting each sentence.”

3. What are your plans or thoughts on curbing recidivism?

Birch — “Throughout my career, I have had the pleasure of practicing in front of and learning from some of the best trial court judges to wear the robe in our state. One thing I have learned from all of them is to never quit learning and to never quit trying to do the job better. Embracing new programs and technologies has been a hallmark of our county courts.

“Combating recidivism is one aspect of the continuing quest to improve our system of justice for all our citizens. Our current Circuit Court Judge was instrumental in establishing a drug court for our county. A drug court is a type of problem-solving court that provides structure and systems for appropriate defendants to break the revolving door of criminal behavior related to substance abuse. Graduates will leave the program with a criminal conviction and potentially a further sentence or probation, but they will also have proven to the drug court team and more importantly themselves they can break the cycle of addiction. The program is long, intense and has been highly successful.

“Our county also has established a partnership with Whitley County to allow appropriate individuals to participate in their Veteran’s Court. The success of these programs has led to consideration of establishing additional problem-solving courts in our county. I have been discussing these ideas with the team that is evaluating such programs, looking to Wabash County as a model. I will support these continued efforts as well as others that may become available to improve the effectiveness of our local criminal justice system. As judge, I would look to continue, improve, and expand the drug court program, as well as other similar problem-solving programs to get at the root causes of recidivism.”

Buehler — “During my time in the prosecutor’s office, I have worked as an integral part of the drug court team and understand how it operates. Drug treatment courts have proven to be extremely effective in reducing the recidivism of drug offenders. The Hon. Michael W. Reed of the Kosciusko Circuit Court has presided over the drug treatment court for the past several years and, if elected, I will continue and seek to expand his great work and the work of the entire drug court team.”