Four-way Schenectady County Family Court judge race heats up
SCHENECTADY — Two lawyers who work in the Schenectady County attorney’s office and another who once worked there, as well as the incumbent, are seeking the Schenectady County Family Court judge seat.
The race among the four Democrats will be decided in the June 25 primary. There are no Republican candidates currently running.
Incumbent Judge Jill Polk, who will complete her first 10year term on the bench at year’s end, appeared before the Schenectady County Democratic Committee last month along with Michael Godlewski, Samantha Miller-herrera and Camille Siano Enders to seek the party’s support.
The panel ultimately endorsed Miller-herrera, a former Rotterdam Town Board member who currently serves as first deputy county attorney for Family Court, overseeing cases mostly involving juvenile delinquents as well as child neglect and support proceedings.
Godlewski, 41, used to work as a first deputy county attorney and Siano Enders, 54, is currently a deputy county attorney.
Frank Salamone, chair of the county Democrats, who also works in the county attorney’s office, lauded Millerherrera, 41, for having an “understanding temperament,” an important trait for a family court jurist, he said.
“It was apparent that there’s an issue, and the committee went in a different direction, and their feeling was that (Mrs.) Miller-herrera was the best suited to be the next family court judge,” Salamone said in an interview.
That “issue,” he said, has to do with Polk’s admonishment by the state Commission on Judicial Conduct in 2022 for having her secretary and close friend plan her daughter’s religious celebration, a violation of rules that prohibit judges from using court resources for their own personal benefit.
“I think the committee was concerned about the fact that she had been disciplined for misconduct, and I think there were also concerns about her treatment of litigants and attorneys and stakeholders that appear in her court, and based on that the committee didn’t believe she had the temperament to continue to carry the banner of the Democratic party in an election,” Salamone said. “There are plenty of qualified attorneys out there that could be judges that have not been disciplined.”
Polk, 62, in an email response said the matter in
question occurred early in her judgeship because she “misunderstood a determination” and that once it was brought to her attention, she fixed it, apologized and took full responsibility.
“I addressed the issue with honor and integrity,” wrote the Niskayuna Democrat, who has been an attorney since 1988. “The matter was personal and had nothing to do with courtroom practice.”
She also said she wouldn’t “dignify the comments of the county chair” countering that they are “misleading and a mischaracterization of the facts, based on hearsay” and that “disgruntled litigants and attorneys are something judges must address.”
“Character assaults and unsubstantiated gossip are ethically prohibited in judicial races, and frankly, unkind, uncivilized, and certainly not the manner in which adults should conduct themselves,” she added.
Polk, a former attorney for the commission who has been a Family Court judge since 2015, had the secretary research options for Polk for vacation rentals, vehicle service, a locksmith and the cost of a landscaper, the commission said at the time.
Additionally, the panel determined that between 2015 and 2017, Polk allowed her daughter, when she was 12- and 13-years old to be unsupervised in the courthouse, where the girl regularly spoke to and effectively distracted court officers posted at magnetometer at a security checkpoint.
Polk, who testified via video during a hearing, later apologized for her actions. Polk also, in the email, cited her body of work in her nine years on the job, insisting her “experience is unparalleled and unmatched.”
“I have presided over (13,000-plus) matters, changed court protocol to be more humane and sensitive to people’s time and needs, created and implemented new programs to help youths find more constructive paths, and continue to promote diversity,” she said, adding that, in her role as director of the state Family Court Judges Association, she meets regularly with legislators and administrative judges in a bid to secure the necessary resources to strengthen Family Court. “I have been advocating for a childcare center on site, supervised visitation programs, increased mental health services, and a new facility for Family Court.”
In November 2014, Polk won a three-candidate race over Deanna Siegel and Ursula Hall to win the judgeship.
This time, she’ll have to fend off challenges from Siano Enders, Godlewsi and Miller-herrera to retain her seat on the bench.
The annual salary is $210,900 with an increase coming in April.
The challengers
Siano Enders’ nearly 30-year resume as an attorney includes private practice work, leadership jobs with at least two state agencies, including the Workers’ Compensation Board, where she was also an administrative judge, four years as a Duanesburg town justice, plus time as a mediator and resolver of appeals and provider of free legal clinics, according to her website for Family Court judge.
The Scotia resident makes the case online that the candidate must be a woman to bring about the diversity the court needs, be a diligent public servant, creative thinker, successful manager and possess the highest level of professionalism.
“I think I’m the best person for the job, I have a tremendous amount of experience in a variety of different roles, and I think is what would make the best Family Court judge,” she said during a phone interview.
Godlewski said “Family Court is my passion” and something he’s done for the past 15 years of his professional career.
The Glenville resident currently is a court attorney referee in Family Court in Albany, Columbia, Rensselaer and Schoharie counties. Before that he was a member of the Glenville Town Board and had 121⁄2 years in the county attorney’s office, much of that time as chief prosecutor of child abuse and neglect in county Family Court.
“When I left the county attorney’s office and stepped down from the Glenville Town Board, those were very difficult decisions to make, but I made that with the idea that I was getting an opportunity to pursue essentially doing judge work in Family Court, it’s what I do every day,” he said, noting his job as a state referee focusing more on Family Court matters. He also was endorsed by the Schenectady County Conservative Party.
Miller-herrera’s campaign website indicates that for nearly 20 years she has “worked on every type of case in Family Court, including as a prosecutor, an attorney for children, and representing low-income families.”
“I am dedicated to a vision for Family Court that reflects the values of justice, compassion, and a commitment to the wellbeing of families and children,” stated Miller-herrera in a news release about her winning the party endorsement.
She began her legal career as an advocate for domestic violence victims and has also worked as a prosecutor and an attorney for children and needy families.
Godlewski sees wider implications of the Family Court contest.
“This race, where we sit both as candidates and as a party, I think that this race is going to be unique in Schenectady County Democratic circles, there was an endorsement process, we respect the results, but I ultimately feel that I have the strongest candidacy, and that when we take our case to the voters that we’ll be able to make a strong case that I should be the next Family Court judge,” he said
The four-way race threatens to widen the gulf among some Democrats and split the party like it did in 2022 when the hierarchy endorsed Andrew Healey for Schenectady City Court judge, a race that his primary opponent Kate Mcguirl went on to win.
In a Feb. 24 email Salamone sent to “valued members of the Democratic Committee, he reminds them that Millerherrera ‘received the overwhelming support of the Committee and was endorsed on the first ballot of voting.’ He said it’s come to his attention that ‘multiple individuals who unsuccessfully sought the Committee’s endorsement have requested members of our Committee to assist their efforts to challenge” Miller-herrera in a primary campaign.
He reminded them of the process to this point where everyone had the opportunity to make their case and encourages everyone to get solidly behind Miller-herrera and “refuse any request on behalf of another candidate to participate in campaign-related activities.”