Bush appoints 2 to circuit judgeships
Lawyer Pamela Campbell and Judge Shawn Crane are picked to fill vacancies in the Pinellas-Pasco circuit.
By JAMAL THALJI Times Staff Writer
Published September 29, 2006
The call came to the Pinellas-Pasco circuit's newest judges on Wednesday night, and it came from Gov. Jeb Bush himself.
"He said, 'Congratulations, do you still want to be a circuit judge?' " St. Petersburg lawyer Pamela Campbell recalled Thursday. "I said, 'Why yes I do.' "
The governor appointed Campbell and Pinellas County Judge Shawn Crane to fill bench vacancies on the 6th Judicial Circuit.
Crane, 47, was appointed to the county bench in 2001 after two decades as a prosecutor. He will fill the vacancy left by the dismissal of former Pasco Circuit Judge John Renke III. Renke was fired by the Florida Supreme Court for campaign violations.
Crane is already filling in on circuit assignments and currently handles Pinellas' drug court. He learned a lot in county court, he said.
"First, you need to be patient," Crane said. "You need to appreciate the situation of people who find themselves in front of you. And you have to be fair.
"I hope to bring all of that to the circuit bench."
Next week it will be 17 years practicing law for Campbell, 51. She specializes in health, probate and guardianship issues. She was on board for one of Tampa Bay's most high-profile legal battles: representing Bob and Mary Schindler, the parents of Terri Schiavo. Campbell was appointed to the post vacated by retired Pinellas Circuit Judge James Case.
"For everyone who appears before the court, I would like them to feel their case is being heard objectively and fairly," she said, "and that someone is listening and cares about the outcome of the ruling."
Crane could be elevated to the circuit soon, while Campbell will have to wrap up her law practice before she takes the bench. The circuit's chief judge will decide their permanent assignments after the November judicial elections.