Shelby County district judge candidates discuss mental health, caseloads
Shelby County voters will have the chance to reelect a district judge for Place 2 or choose a new face for the bench.
Incumbent Casey Duncan was appointed to his seat in 2022 by Gov. Kay Ivey, when the seat was left vacant after the death of Judge Daniel A. Crowson Jr. He faces Ashley N. Bell in the election.on Nov. 5.
See voter guides, Alabama election information here.
“We’re an ever growing county,” Duncan said in an interview with AL.com. “I feel like I’ve improved matters since being appointed. Backlog of cases have been reduced. People are getting done with court in sooner time. It used to be that the timeframe for a civil case in Shelby County was about two years, we got it down to 13 months. I like what I do, I’m good at it and I’m running to keep my job.”
His opponent, Bell, is a lawyer, has a master’s in social work, and claims to be the first Black women to run for district court judge in the county, although she’s making it clear that she’s not running on her race.
“I’m running on my qualifications. However, I do believe our government needs to look like the citizens. I do believe diversity is important. And when I speak of diversity, I don’t mean just the race, I’m not just talking about ethnicity, I mean people that bring different things to the table,” Bell said to AL.com.
Both candidates said substance abuse and mental health care are ongoing issues that they want to address through the services toffered in the county’s court system.
“Too often you have individuals walk into court feeling like they’re not going to get a fair trial or a fair hearing. But with my background in social work, I know too often, how to look at thing wholistically, and ask ‘how did we get here?’,” Bell said.
“We’re trying very hard and the county is invested in terms of resources, and committed to come up with solutions. The county just hired a mental health liason between the courthouse and law enforcement. But it may be a three years before we really see results,” Duncan said.
The general election takes place on Tuesday, November 5th. For general information on the Shelby County election, click here.