Voters in some Pike County precincts will elect a new Central District justice court judge in a runoff election Tuesday, with the only certainty that a woman will be elected to the bench.
Loretta Thompson Conerly and Sheilar Conerly Pickens are running in the special election to fill the year left on the term for former Judge Melvin Hollins, who retired earlier this year.
Polls are open from 7 a.m. to 7 p.m. Precincts participating are New Hope Baptist Church on Locust St. in McComb, Summit United Methodist Church, the Martin Luther King Center, Lifepointe Church of the Nazarene on Presley Boulevard, St. Mary Free Will Baptist Church on C.C. Bryant Drive, the Holmesville Community Center and St. James M.B. Church and Navilla Baptist Church, both on Old Highway 24
Here’s a look at the candidates:
Loretta Conerly
Conerly finished with 48% of the vote in the Nov. 8 general election among a field of four candidates, just shy of the 50%-plus-one-vote margin needed to avoid a runoff. Pickens finished in second with 30%.
Conerly, 55, is a longtime justice court employee who served as Hollins’ court administrator before county supervisors appointed her to the bench in the interim at Hollins’ recommendation. While that may come as an advantage, she’s not resting on her laurels.
“I’m still going door to door,” she said. “But I am going to different places. I can’t keep knocking on the same door, so I’m going to the houses I didn’t get a chance to go to. I’m sticking to my vision, and continuing to push my name back out there.”
Conerly holds firm in her belief that she is the right person for the job.
“I’m in a positive state of mind,” she said. “Hopefully people can see that I have the right qualifications for the job, and that I’m here to help the community.”
Conerly said she chooses not to listen to speculation about the outcome of the election.
“I’m trying not to listen to what’s being said about my chances,” she said. “We don’t know who’s going to be voted in until the day of, and not everyone goes back out to vote, so the best I can do is wait it out.”
Conerly might not be listening to her chances, but she is listening to the issues that voters are most concerned about.
“I’ve been hearing a lot of issues around DUI’s,” she said, “They want to know how to keep it off their record if it’s their first offense. We have programs for that. While they will still have to pay the fines, some may be eligible to be non-adjudicated. This is where you plead guilty to a charge but are not convicted. Judgment is withheld, you go on probation for a period of time, then the charge gets dismissed and you can have it expunged from your record.”
Sheilar Conerly Pickens
Fairness. and efficiency are the two traits Pickens says she wants to bring to justice court if elected
Pickens is the administrator of the Boys & Girls Club of Southwest Mississippi and is involved in other activities, including the Summit Street Unity Festival, Gertrude’s Garden and her church, Pleasant Grove East McComb Baptist.
“I like serving the people, I like serving the community,” she said.
Pickens is making her third run for the office, having previously run against Hollins.
“I only want fairness,” she said. “I’m definitely going to be unbiased, I’m fair. I do believe in some cases that people do need a second chance.”
Pickens said she already fields a lot of questions about cases people have pending in justice court, and that means there’s a need for more education about the justice system in the community, including knowing the consequences of breaking the law.
“They just don’t know the sentences or the penalties that can come before them due to their actions and what their actions can bring against them,” she said.
Those actions can lead to important decisions for judges.
“The justice court still presides over some felony criminal cases that are brought to you,” Pickens said. “You need to decide whether or not you’re going to give bond on certain cases, and those are crucial decisions.”
Pickens said she hopes to work with churches to establish community service programs. She said her administrative experience will help her maintain an efficient court docket, and she wants to prioritize cases so that law enforcement officers don’t have to wait too long to testify.
“They should get to go first,” she said.
Pickens is hoping for a decent turnout in Tuesday’s runoff.
“The encouragement is definitely there. I think the biggest strategy is going to influence and encourage people to get out and vote,” she said.
