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Two Babylon men vie for District Court seat
Babylon Village resident Gary Brunjes is seeking his first full term as a judge in Second District Court. Brunjes, who was appointed in April to the post to fill the unexpired term of Judge Dan Loughlin when Loughlin was elected to the Supreme Court, faces opposition from Democrat John Kelly, an attorney from Deer Park. Both men appeared at a meet-the-candidates night sponsored by the West Babylon Civic Association and held at the West Babylon South Bay Elementary School Tuesday, October 3. Judges are prohibited from discussing specific cases, or expressing their political or personal views on major issues. What they are permitted to do when campaigning for office, however, and what Brunjes and Kelly did that night was to outline their qualifications and the reasons they wanted the job. Brunjes was born and raised in Babylon, has been involved in civic organizations and served as a member of the Babylon School Board. An attorney for 14 years, he worked as a law clerk under Supreme Court Justice Gerard D’Emilio.
Kelly, who has also been an attorney for 14 years, has a private law practice in Bay Shore. He has represented people in more than 150 trials in District, Supreme and Family Court, and is a member of the Law Guardian Panel, and Assigned Council Panel, a group of attorneys who represent indigent people. "In the years I have been involved with the courts, I have seen the judges doing a good job and believe that I can add to that," said Kelly who is married and has three children. For many people, their only image of the court system is what they see on television, and while there is some truth to shows like Law and Order or Judge Judy, the reality is a lot different. "We have (the producers) of shows like Judge Judy pouring over our court records every day looking for unusual cases or wacky people," said Brunjes, drawing a few laughs from the crowd. "And for the ones they pick, it’s not a bad deal. They get picked up by a limousine, get paid $400, and even if they lose, the the show pays the damages." Brunjes said that in reality, though, the cases before District Court are about "flesh and blood" people, many of whom may be intimidated or afraid of the process. "I tell them to tell me their story in simple language and not to be concerned about legalese," said Brunjes. "I try to put them at ease, and to make them more comfortable because I don’t want them to be afraid. It bothers me to think that some people would come into court and be afraid of the American Justice system. I don’t want that." Kelly agrees that the court system handles matters that are important in the lives of people who come before the courts, and said that he would use his "life experiences," to be a good judge. Kelly grew up in Islip and attended New York Law School. He worked for a time in the Manhattan District Attorney’s office while attending school and then worked for a small law firm before opening his own practice eight years ago. While living in Deer Park he was involved with his children in scouting and softball Little League. Brunjes attended New York Law School and served as Town Attorney from 1983 to 1987. Following that, he worked for the law firm of Van Nostrand and Martin in Amityville before moving to his position as law clerk. Brunjes is running on the Republican, Right to Life and Independence lines. Kelly is running on the Democratic, Conservative and working Families lines. Election day is Tuesday, November 7. the polls are open from 6 a.m., to 9 p.m.
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