Cindy Scott
Age: 55
Residence: Morgantown
Education: WVU, Bachelor of Science in Business Administration; WVU College of Law, doctor of jurisprudence.
Political and civic experience: Served Monongalia County as both a defense attorney and an assistant prosecutor. I have served on the Monongalia County Sexual Assault Response Team (SART) since 2012 and previously on the Monongalia/Preston Counties Violence Against Women Act STOP Team. I served on the Human Rights Committee for the Monongalia County Youth Services Center and worked directly with the Court Appointed Special Advocates for victims of child abuse/neglect. I am a member of Kingdom: A Community Church and regularly teach Bible school.
Professional experience: Currently, I am an assistant director for WVU’s Division of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion, Office of Equity Assurance, where I work to prevent and address discrimination, harassment and intimate partner violence involving WVU’s faculty, staff and students. My responsibilities include leading the Prevention and Education Team, assisting with the Peer Advocate Program and reviewing Title IX case investigations. Upon graduating from WVU College of Law in 1994, I began a 12-year career as a private practice attorney, focusing on criminal defense through West Virginia Public Defender Services.
Campaign statement: For 25-plus years, I have practiced law in Monongalia County, with more than 22 years spent in the courtroom. Additionally, my work at WVU has deepened my understanding of the equality concerns in our community and the opportunities for awareness education. My representation in hundreds of courtroom proceedings and my specific knowledge of Monongalia County have uniquely prepared me to serve as judge. I have a complete mastery of courtroom rules and proceedings, and I have the benefit of lessons learned from past rulings from the bench.
Top priorities: Because of my extensive courtroom experience, I will hit the ground running as judge and work to make both timely and effective rulings. My unique background has prepared me to appreciate the intricacies of each case and to know when alternative sentences should be considered and when incarceration is necessary. Above all else, the citizens of Monongalia County must be protected and deserve a circuit court judge who can understand offenders, deter crime and make the right decisions under any circumstance.
Debra Scudiere
Age: 65
Residence: Westover
Education: Bachelor’s, WVU, 1976, double major in French and English with a secondary school teaching certificate; Doctor of Jurisprudence, WVU College of Law, 1982, West Virginia Law Review; president, Marlyn E. Lugar Trial Association; Order of the Barrister.
Political and civic experience: Past president of the West Virginia State Bar; past president of the Southern Conference of Bar Presidents; and a Fellow of the West Virginia Bar Foundation. Previously named in Best Lawyers in America for mediation, litigation and personal injury litigation. Served on the Board of Directors of West Virginia Senior Legal Aid Inc. Taught pre-trial litigation and trial advocacy at the WVU College of Law. Served on the Board of Governors of the West Virginia State Bar to the American Bar Association’s House of Delegates.
Professional experience: In only a year as a Judge of the 17th Judicial Circuit, I have already conducted over 1,100 hearings and several full trials. I preside over criminal cases, civil lawsuits, Monongalia County Adult Drug Court, child abuse and neglect matters, extraditions, weddings and adoptions. I also serve on the State Mass Litigation Panel and have been assigned by the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia to work with other judges on the Marcellus Shale cases and the opioid crisis.
Campaign statement: I was a courtroom attorney for 37 years before I became a judge. I appeared in courts all across the state. I tried cases, represented parties and made arguments in front of lots of judges. I know the law. I know what courtrooms are all about. My actual courtroom experience — day-in-and-day out for 37 years and then my year as a judge — make me the best choice to continue as circuit judge.
Top priorities: As a sitting circuit court judge, my job is to make sound, timely rulings. As a result of those decisions, drug dealers and dangerous criminals are put in jail; children are protected from abuse and neglect; and citizens in civil suits get their day in court. I will continue to treat people in my court with respect and to make clear, timely rulings because their problems are serious and they deserve finality, clarity and decisiveness.
Michael Simms
Age: 41
Residence: Cheat Lake
Education: B.A. political science/Pre-Law, WVU; J.D., California Western School of Law.
Political and civic experience: Member of Cheat Lake Rotary; former mentor, Big Brothers, Big Sisters of America; Adopt a Highway Road Cleanup volunteer; Salvation Army bell ringer.
Professional experience: Owner/operator of Simms Law Office in Morgantown since 2007, broad representation of individuals in civil, criminal and juvenile matters.
Campaign statement: Over the past 13 years, I have represented a wide cross-section of our community, including veterans, educators, union workers, students, truck drivers and small business owners. This experience, along with the fact I am the only candidate who has built a law practice from the ground up, has given me a deep understanding of the needs of our community. It’s time for a new way forward and a new energy in circuit court.
Top priorities: I will start a Veterans Treatment Court, increase referrals to Teen Court and revitalize Drug Court. I am also committed to protecting our abused and neglected children, producing better outcomes for families impacted by the substance use epidemic and keeping our community safe. I will bring balance to the court, will issue prompt, well-reasoned orders and will ensure that all are treated with dignity and respect.
