Judge Wingate Appoints Magistrate Selection Panel
On August 14 Judge Wingate entered an Order Appointing Merit Selection Panel for the Magistrate Judge position that is open as a result of Judge Sumner retiring. Here is the Order. the Chairman of the Panel is Maison Heidelberg of Ridgeland. Other lawyer members of the panel are Amy Ryan- Woodville; Robert Latham- Natchez; Robert Allen- Brookhaven; Skipper Samson- Gulfport; Michael McWilliams- Jackson; Doug Minor- Jackson; Steve Montagnet- Ridgeland; James Heidelberg- Pascagoula; Paul Franke- Gulfport; Bill Liston III- Jackson; Rob McDuff- North Congress St., Jackson; and Latoya Merritt; Jackson. The panel included two non-lawyer: Dr. William Ashford (Jackson opthamologist); and Katie McCarstle- Natchez. It's my understanding that all the Southern District judges had input on the panel subject to approval by Judge Wingate.
It is generally expected among the bar that there will be hundreds of applicants for the position. I do not recall the exact number that I heard applied for the seat that Judge Parker filled, but it was over a hundred. The federal magistrate seat pays more than state court judge positions and many people expect a lot of state court judges to apply. The Order states that the panel is "to assist the court in identifying and recommending the applicants who are best qualified to fill said position." My understanding of the process is that the panel narrows the field to five finalists with the Southern District Judges making the final decision.
