Plenty to choose from in Delco Court of Common Pleas races
MEDIA COURTHOUSE >> Delaware County voters will have no shortage of choices when it comes to making nominations for four open seats on the Court of Common Pleas Tuesday.
Democrats and Republicans have each put up four endorsed candidates, and three other unendorsed candidates are also running – one Democrat and two Republicans. Nearly all have crossfiled, meaning they will appear on both sides of the ballot.
The endorsed Democrats are Nusrat Rashid of Chester Township, Kelly Eckel of Upper Providence, Stephanie Klein of Wallingford and Rick Lowe of Middletown. Mike Farrell of Springfield, the only candidate not to crossfile, is also running unendorsed.
Steven K. Gerber of Radnor, George Dawson of Ridley, Elizabeth Naughton Beck of Nether Providence and Wendy B. Roberts of Bethel are the endorsed Republicans. The two unendorsed Republicans are Jennifer C. Dipillo of Edgmont and Deborah C. Truscello of Garnet Valley.
Rashid holds a juris doctorate from Temple University School of Law. She has practiced law for 20 years and has owned a private practice in Chester since 2010, where she focuses on criminal defense and family law.
She said her experience representing underserved communities has granted her a unique and valuable insight into the challenges faced by many county residents that she hopes to bring to the bench. If elected in November, she would be the first African American woman on the county Court of Common Pleas.
“What I’ve come to realize is the public perception of the court is lacking in confidence and trust, and that may be because so many underserved communities do not feel there is truly diverse and inclusive representation in the administration of justice,” she said. “I believe it is important to have a judge on the bench who understands the root causes of trauma, addiction and crime, and will listen to every person who comes into his or her courtroom.”
Eckel, a cum laude graduate of Temple University School of Law, ran for the bench in 2017 and narrowly lost to former District Attorney Jack Whelan. She has been practicing for 22 years and currently works as a commercial litigator at Duane Morris LLP.
Eckel was appointed to the American Arbitration Association’s Panel of Neutral Arbitrators in 2010, where she presides over pre-trial and evidentiary hearings, resolves discovery disputes, reviews written submissions, makes factual and legal findings, and issues rulings and awards.
“That perspective of deciding cases and helping people reach a just end, and giving people an opportunity to come before the court, put on their case, look at what the law says on the different positions and then explaining why the outcome is what the outcome is, I really enjoy that part of my practice,” she said. “I hope to bring all of that – my experience, my impartiality, my independence – to the Court of Common Pleas.”
Klein, who received a law degree from the Washington College of Law, American University in Washington, D.C., served as Magisterial District Judge in 32-128 covering Media, Nether Providence and Swarthmore from 1995 to 2013, winning three elections.
Since 2014, Klein has mediated numerous discrimination cases for the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission and recently testified in front of the House Democratic Policy Committee on mediating sexual harassment cases.
“I am the only candidate with 18 years of state judicial experience … and I earned a reputation as an excellent district judge,” said Klein. “I have learned a lot as a district judge, I have learned an awful lot about alternative dispute resolution as a mediator and arbitrator, and the opportunity to run right now arose, the opportunity to run with a team of extremely well qualified people, and the opportunity to maybe bring different voices to the Court of Common Pleas that have not previously been heard there.”
Lowe is a former Swarthmore mayor, the first Democrat to be elected to that position, and holds a J.D. from New York University. He has been practicing for 36 years as a civil attorney specializing in construction matters, including about 10 years as an arbitrator, mediator and a judge pro tem.
Lowe said his experience as an attorney, as a mayor working with police, as an advocate for victim’s rights and his work teaching a course in American history to prisoners at SCI Graterford has given him a well-rounded
perspective on numerous legal issues .
“I feel eminently well qualified to be a judge because that’s what arbitrators do and mediators do when they try to settle cases,” he said. “No Democrat has ever been elected judge in Delaware County and I believe that by being one of the first, not only would we make history, but we would also be bringing a balance of values and perspectives that I believe would enhance the reputation of the courthouse. People would not jump to the conclusion of it’s who you know, but rather they would feel more comfortable that everyone would be getting a fair shake.”
Farrell has 26 years of experience as a litigator and is a graduate of the Cornell Law School. He previously served as legislative assistant to Democratic New Jersey U.S. Sen. Frank Lautenberg, served in the U.S. Army for 10 years, and has run for the Pennsylvania Senate twice in 2006 and 2010. He also ran for Delaware County Court of Common Pleas in 2007.
Farrell has spent the last 20 years dealing with young-onset Parkinson’s disease, which he said gives him insight and empathy into the real-world struggles people might face coming before a court.
“I think having struggled in life, you gain a certain perspective, a certain understanding,” he said. “It’s not just about facts and law, it has to be about people.”
Farrell added that he is undeterred by not receiving the endorsement of the party because the only endorsement that matter comes from the people at the polls.
Gerber received his law degree from William and Mary Law School and has practiced at Cozen O’Connor since 1992 with a focus on litigating property damage matters. He previously served on the Radnor Township School Board, where he was president for a term, and is currently a Delaware County Representative to the SEPTA Citizens Advisory Committee. Gerber also serves as an arbitrator in Delaware County.
Gerber has long served his community in a variety of roles, but said his status as a cancer survivor has given him a new perspective on life and he now wants to marry his avocation of public service with his vocation as a lawyer.
“I’m a very experienced litigator and feel that with my experience what I would bring to it is to be a ‘lawyers judge,’” he said. “What I mean by that is to respect the parties, respect the lawyers’ clients who would appear before me, to respect the lawyers, to respect their cases and to let them try their cases.”
Dawson, a county deputy district attorney since 2013 overseeing the Anti-Violence and Insurance Fraud Units, graduated cum laude from what is now WMUCooley Law School in Michigan (formerly Thomas M. Cooley).
Dawson said he has two decades of legal experience and a vast amount of experience with the Delaware County court system in particular. He has practiced as both a prosecutor and defense counsel, and serves as a director on the Ridley School Board.
“I think the bench needs to reflect the population of the county and right now there’s not a lot of diversity on the bench,” he said. “I think we have one of the best benches and boards of judges in the state, but sometimes the perception to people of color is that it’s not balanced, and you would hate for them to have any of that play into their decision making. … We have the fairest, most knowledgeable bench out there right now, but it is just not reflective of the community. We can make it better, broader, more points of view, diverse backgrounds. It only
“I think the bench needs to reflect the population of the county and right now there’s not a lot of diversity on the bench. I think we have one of the best benches and boards of judges in the state, but sometimes the perception to people of color is that it’s not balanced, and you would hate for them to have any of that play into their decision making. … We have the fairest, most knowledgeable bench out there right now, but it is just not reflective of the community. We can make it better, broader, more points of view, diverse backgrounds. It only helps the bench as a whole.”
— George Dawson, a county deputy district attorney and a GOP endorsed candidate for the Court of Common Pleas
helps the bench as a whole.”
Beck has been a trial lawyer for 27 years and is a partner with Swartz Campbell in the Media regional office. She earned her J.D. from Widener University School of Law and serves as chair of the Delaware County Drug & Alcohol Advisory Council. She is also a former chair and member of the Delaware County Women’s Commission.
Beck said being a judge would be a lifelong dream come true and would be a culmination of a career in the courtroom and significant community involvement over the years. She added that a colleague believes she will be a good judge because she will allow lawyers to plead their cases instead of trying to control an outcome.
“I think the role of a judge is be fair and to be objective and not to bring any bias or bring political agenda,” she said. “It’s not about politics, it’s about the law and it’s about applying the law appropriately.”
Roberts has served as the Magisterial District Judge in 32-2-49 covering Bethel, Chadds Ford, Concord, and Thornbury for the past five years. She earned her J.D. from Widener Law School and spent more than 23 years as a defense attorney practicing all over the region.
Roberts said she has brought a very common sense approach to her courtroom in maintaining an overarching rule that everyone leaves feeling like they were treated with respect and dignity, and had ample opportunity to be heard on their issues.
“From my perspective, it makes my job so much easier to treat prisoners and defendants and victims and my staff and constables and lawyers with the exact same respect that I expect from them, and that we all should be giving each other,” she said. “I think in society generally today we are longing for everyone to be treated with respect and certainly my courtroom, I feel, is a safe place that people feel they’re being treated that way.”
Truscello also served eight years as a Magisterial District Judge covering Folcroft and Tinicum, which she said was sort of a “preview” to the Court of Common Pleas. She has also served as an arbitrator and has been a trial attorney for 28 years, including 26 as a private attorney at her law firm in Media.
Truscello, who holds a law degree from Capital University in Ohio, said she brings that experience along with the compassion and understanding that comes with fighting for her clients in the courtroom for nearly 30 years. She noted her court was exceptionally busy and she at one time employed up to seven secretaries.
“After being a district justice and seeing all the different kinds of situations and cases that come across the court’s desk, I can be firm and enforce the laws as they are on the books, and keep my own opinion out of it,” she said. “I’m really big on personal opinions not clouding a judge’s work. There’s going to be times of discretion and times where you have to make a decision one way or the other, but I intend to follow the law, follow the rules that we have in place and do the right thing.”
Dipillo holds a law degree from Widener University, where she graduated with honors after attending night classes at her own expense, and has spent nearly two decades as an advocate for victims of sexual violence. She currently works as an attorney for Women Against Rape through the Crime Victims Law Project.
Dipillo said she brings a working-class background and wealth of knowledge on domestic issues that would translate well to family court. She said she did not seek an endorsement because she does not want to appear beholden to any party or organization.
“I have dealt with a vast variety of clientele over the years, mostly people who don’t have a lot of means, and I think I have a good perspective there … for what most of Delaware County looks like,” she said. “I’ve also worked in other counties, so I’ve seen how they do things elsewhere and I have a lot of what I think are great ideas about how to make things more efficient and user friendly for the taxpayers.”