Francie Hill

Monroe County Circuit Judge, Seat 3 Candidate (Incumbent)

Francie Hill graduated from Purdue University in 1974 with degrees in education and sociology. She graduated from the IU School of Law cum laude in 1979.

In addition to six years on the bench as a circuit court judge, Hill served as Family Court Project lead judge, developed a mortgage foreclosure program and serves on the Indiana Supreme Court committee rewriting the Parenting Time Guidelines.

She was associate professor at the IU School of Law, directed the IU Law Child Advocacy Clinic, presided over juvenile court and created the CASA program in Monroe County.

“The most pressing issue facing our family court is the rising hostility and conflict in divorce cases and the increasing number of parents who place their children in danger through their substance abuse, domestic violence, criminality and child neglect. I am currently working in our community to develop affordable programming for child safety in high risk divorce cases and to tap into the talents of our IU students and professors. Regarding our criminal case load, it is critical to maintain our specialized drug and domestic violence courts, seek funding for a work release facility and continue our policy to incarcerate when community safety is at risk but otherwise provide affordable alternatives that ensure accountability.

“The Indiana Judicial Code of Conduct prohibits a judge from considering the political affiliation of any person in the courtroom, and an unbiased judiciary is a basic tenet of due process of law. However, Indiana law requires judges to run in partisan elections in Monroe County. I deal with this contradiction by scrupulously avoiding any political bias in my courtroom and by maintaining my independence from political platforms."

— Claire Wiseman