Candidates for Greene County judge face off in tight race

In Greene County -- the county directly west of Monroe County where circuit court judges have held on to their jobs for decades -- a newly appointed incumbent circuit court judge is facing a challenger.\nThe race is now the most closely watched in the county.\nRepublican Erik "Chip" Allen, 33, has only been judge since July 31. He took office after Republican Gov. Mitch Daniels appointed him to replace Judge David K. Johnson, who has since joined the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission. \nDemocratic candidate Joseph Sullivan, a longtime Bloomfield attorney in his 60s, challenges Allen on the grounds that he is more experienced than Allen and more rooted in Greene County. He criticized his adversary for working outside Greene County.\n"The other candidate hasn't even been in Greene County. He's been working in Clay County," Sullivan said. "I have civil and criminal experience in the courts. I have been a practicing attorney for 40 years, and I have been in the military. Allen has only been out of law school for seven years."\nAllen said that his experience as an attorney and a judge outweighs his age. While he worked in Clay County as chief deputy prosecutor, he continued to reside in Greene County, where he maintained a private law practice, he said. \nCarolyn Konnert, librarian and director of the Bloomfield-Eastern Greene County Public Library, said both candidates are highly visible in the community. \n"Erik is the son of the current sheriff, and Sullivan is a well-known lawyer," she said. "I don't know who is going to win. I suspect that it depends on where you are because in general, the eastern part is Republican and the western part is Democrat."\nNick Schneider, assignment editor for Greene County publication The Daily World, predicted Greene County will not vote on party lines. He said he expects the candidates' experience and age to be two critical factors that will surface and shape the upcoming election.\nScott Richards, a retired resident and mutual friend both of Sullivan and of Allen's father, William Leon Allen, expects there will be a higher turnout of Democratic voters because the national political backdrop will be influential in the local elections. \n"Because of the war in Iraq and Bush administration, people will split their tickets, especially when Republicans like Mitch Daniels have poor ratings," he said. \nHowever, Allen's father, William Leon Allen, pointed out that his son has skills relevant to the position. \n"I think the skills that he's learned to this point -- private law, public defender and both civil and criminal law -- are important," he said, "Obviously, the governor and precinct believed that he was the right man for the job to appoint him to Circuit Court Judge." \nBoth judicial candidates described the attributes they think a circuit court judge needs.\n"I think a good judge is patient, understands the law and speaks on a level that people understand and most of all, has experience working with different types of cases," Sullivan said. \nAllen commented: "You definitely have to know the material. You have to be hard-working and honest. All cases have challenging moments, and I think the most challenging ones are the ones with juvenile services. Since they are children, they have special circumstances, and I think they are the most challenging." The judicial candidates also gave their reasons for aspiring to be the next judge.\n"I have 40 years of experience -- I have dealt with all kinds of cases -- civil, divorce, murder cases, you name it," Sullivan said. \nEver since Allen decided to go to IU School of Law, he has wanted to be a judge in Greene County, he said.\n"I always wanted to come back to where I grew up and become judge. I thought the position is what I would like and be well-suited for," he said. "Judge Johnson retired, and I knew I wanted to run"