Candidates for a newly created 5th Judicial Circuit seat are touting issues that may make them stand out.
By JOHN FRANK
Published August 24, 2006
In an effort to differentiate themselves for voters, the candidates vying for the Group 30 circuit judgeship are getting testy.
Mike Gourley, a former public defender, and Michael Takac, an assistant state attorney general, come into the race for the newly created seat in Lake County with previous electoral defeats, giving both campaigns a sense of urgency.
Gourley lost a race for a Marion County judgeship in 1998 while Takac lost campaigns in 2002 and 2004 for seats on the circuit bench.
They are trading veiled barbs at community forums throughout the five-county circuit on the topics of family life, legal experience and political connections. The race is nonpartisan and judicial candidates typically avoid disclosing personal views, so these issues allow the candidates to stand out.
Gourley, 44, makes his status as a family man prominent when he talks with voters. He and his wife, Chrissy, have been married 12 years and live in Ocala with their two young children.
"I share in the day-to-day life experience of parenthood," Gourley said. "Not having that experience is a detriment to making decisions in family law and other issues, including child abuse and child neglect cases."
Takac pronounced Tack-us is also a 44-year-old Ocala resident. He has no children. At a recent Citrus County forum, he announced he had just gotten engaged and joked that it was good for his political life.
On the family issue, he said Gourley is "selling me short" about his ability to handle family-related legal matters. In his campaign literature Takac makes his family a point by including a picture of himself holding his young nephew who wears a "Vote for My Uncle Mike" T-shirt.
"I have been on the same basketball court coaching children against a team that (Gourley) coached, so both our hearts are in the same place," he said.
Takac goes on the offensive when it comes to legal experience. He has worked some criminal cases but mostly deals with civil cases, particularly eminent domain issues. He said his legal experience is more broad and diverse than Gourley's.
"I think I come at it from a background legally that my opponent simply doesn't have," Takac said.
The claim comes in response to how Gourley touts his 12 years with the Public Defender's Office, six years in private practice and his board certification as a criminal trial attorney. Gourley says he is one of nine in the state with this distinction.
He received the certification in 1995 after undergoing written tests in state and federal law as well as a thorough background check with confidential questionnaires from legal colleagues.
Takac said he doesn't need to pay money to take a test that gets him a certification.
"I'm not board certified and that's by choice, he said. "No one ever asks me if that's a certified (legal) response."
Politics also colors the race because Takac has experience working for both political parties during his tenure in the offices of a governor and two attorneys general.
Gourley took issue with that record at a recent candidate forum. "I'll tell you one thing," he said, "what we don't want as a circuit court judge is a politician."
On other issues, the candidates diverge, but largely agree.
Gourley said Circuit Judge Ric Howard's 30-year maximum prison sentence for William Thornton "shocked" him, especially because the Sumter County teenager didn't have a previous criminal record. Thornton was 17 when he skidded through a stop sign, causing an accident that killed two.
Gourley believes strongly in prison-diversion programs, especially for first-time offenders.
Takac echoed that sentiment, saying all but a few offenders are eligible for rehabilitation. He wouldn't comment directly on the Thornton case, but said, "If a guy comes in for his first transgression, I'm going to be reticent to ruin his life."
As for sentencing guidelines, Gourley feels they are too strict. "The court needs discretion," he said.
Takac was even more direct. "I don't like them," he said. "The public is better served if left open to the judge's discretion."
The judicial race is nonpartisan, meaning all voters in the 5th Judicial Circuit's member counties (Citrus, Hernando, Marion, Lake and Sumter) will have a chance to cast ballots.
Gourley, 44, is a Jacksonville native. He holds a bachelor's degree and a law degree from the University of Florida. For 13 years he served as a public defender in Ocala before he entered private practice in 2001. He is certified in criminal trial law. He lost a Marion County judicial race in 1998. Gourley is involved in a number of community organizations coaching basketball and baseball. He is married with two children.
ASSETS: Home, cars, boat, cash, investments.
LIABILITIES: Bank loans.
SOURCE OF INCOME: Law practice, investments.
MICHAEL TAKAC
Takac, 44, moved to Ocala from Teaneck, N.J., when he was 13. He earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Wake Forest University and a law degree from Campbell University, both North Carolina schools. He has spent most of his 17-year legal practice in Ocala, except for stints with the Florida Attorney General's Office, 1995-97, and from 2005 to the present, and the Governor's Office, 1997-99. Takac is not married. He lost 5th Circuit judicial races in 2002 and 2004.
