NEW SCOTLAND — Two attorneys in town are facing off for one town justice position.

Incumbent Judge Thomas Dolin, a Democrat, says his 12 years of experience as a New Scotland judge make him good at his job.

Challenger Susan Aron-DeFronzo, a Republican, says her diverse experience as an attorney prepares her for being a town justice, coupled with her innate ability to judge character.

Dolin has lived at his Swift Road home since 1968. His three children are now grown. He is running on the Democratic, Independence, and Conservative lines.

Aron-DeFronzo, a Voorheesville resident since 1999, has the backing of New Scotland’s Republican party. Her daughter is in elementary school.

New Scotland town justices preside over a court that handles traffic and zoning violations, criminal cases, civil suits up to $3,000, and felony arraignments.

In 2005, New Scotland’s judges earned $20,596; they serve four-year terms.

The Enterprise asked both candidates about the same issues.

Susan Aron-DeFronzo

Aron-DeFronzo says her law experience in a variety of fields of law qualifies her for the job of town justice.

As an assistant district attorney for Nassau County, from a prosecutor’s approach, Aron-DeFronzo represented the rights of victims. In law school, she handled pre-trial civil matters; and, most recently, as chief council for a state senator, she has had to consider conflicting views on legislative matters, she said.
All of this prepares her for the diversity of cases in town court, and her range of experience gives her the ability to "balance the equities," she said.

One of the most important characteristics a judge should have is the ability to judge character, Aron-DeFronzo said.
"It’s not a quality you can acquire, but it’s innate; you have it or you don’t," she said.

A judge has to be able to determine if what she is hearing rings true or doesn’t, she said.
Aron-DeFronzo was brought up by German immigrant parents who have a strong sense of right and wrong, and "that is something that I’ve carried with me," she said. "Not only in my hard work ethic, but in doing what’s right," she said.
Each case before her as a judge will "stand on its own," she said. It’s important not to pre-judge people or the case, she said.
"Two people can see the same thing and see it two different ways," she said. A judge has to handle each case with a sense of fairness and integrity, she said.

While sentencing, where judges have discretion to choose from a range of punishments, Aron-DeFronzo said, some of the deciding factors is prior history, the person’s ties to the community, what type of person he or she is, and how severe the crime is.
She said her sentencing decisions will "help society as a whole."

Aron-DeFronzo wants to accomplish two things — help criminals rehabilitate themselves and also protect society.
"Criminal justice goals are not just punishment for the sake of punishment," Aron-DeFronzo said, but to "help that person become gainfully employed and put some good back into society."

It’s a balance of that, plus protecting New Scotland’s great quality of life, Aron-DeFronzo said.
Judges can help maintain that quality of life, she said, "through our decision-making."

Community service and restitution are good forms of punishment, Aron-DeFronzo said.
"Programs...may help certain people better than a jail sentence," she said.
"I think it’s important to be lenient when that’s warranted and strict when warranted and, most importantly, to know the difference," she said.

When a case involves abusers, whether it be domestic abuse or alcohol abuse, Aron-DeFronzo thinks that the town court should make information readily available, and inform people where they can find needed services.

A town judge should not directly assist a victim because that would be choosing sides, Aron-DeFronzo said, but she would work with the court clerk and elected officials to make sure that residents are aware of available programs.

A judge should be aware of things that are happening in the community, and attend community events, such as seminars put on by the school, Aron-DeFronzo said, because by remaining aware and informed all elected officials can work together to better society.

Thomas Dolin

Judge Dolin has established a routine in his courtroom where, when the night starts, he informs all the defendants of their options, he said. Most of the cases are traffic infractions, Dolin said, and he doesn’t want the individuals who don’t have a lawyer to have a disadvantage. In fairness, he said, he wants to make certain that everyone knows the process.
His courtroom, he said, is "not rushed and everyone knows their rights."

He tells the defendants that they have the opportunity to meet with the arresting officer who, in the town of New Scotland is also the prosecutor, and each defendant has the right to be heard, he said.
"A lot of people only have one or two infractions for their whole lives," Dolin said.
If a individual "has a clean driving card, police officers generally make an offer of a lesser charge," with moving violations, Dolin said.

Over his 12 years as judge in New Scotland, Dolin has adjusted some things in town court. Dolin and New Scotland’s other justice, Republican Margaret Adkins, agreed a year-and-a-half ago to move the court starting time up an hour to 6 p.m., so that people can stop in on their way home from work. They have also added a second court night each week, to spread out the cases heard, so that people can get in and out in a more reasonable amount of time, Dolin said.

He is now going to start experimenting with a morning session, something that Adkins has already started, to try to accommodate the working and single parents, Dolin said.

Judges can play a role in the community as well, Dolin said. In the past, he has attended seminars at Voorheesville’s high school. He participated a few years ago, for example, in a panel about parents’ hosting drinking parties for teenagers; he explained the criminality of such events, he said.

Later this month, Dolin is attending a seminar at the school to talk about teenagers and Internet crimes, such as harassment through e-mail, and instant messages, he said.

He said he has had a few cases in New Scotland involving teenagers and Internet abuse, but not enough that he would classify it as a problem.
"I wouldn’t say it’s rampant," Dolin said.
He plans to explain to students and parents their obligation. "I also understand there’s situations where there is anonymous name-calling," on-line, he said.

Another form of Internet harassment is if the message is threatening in some way, Dolin said.

Messages posted on open spaces or Internet bulletin boards are protected more by free speech then direct e-mail or instant messages, Dolin said.

A judge can take on an educational role in the courtroom as well, Dolin said.

In New Scotland court, years ago, a volunteer from the county’s domestic abuse bureau used to be on hand. Now, judges have to take on a larger role in informing people of the resources that are available to them, having names, addresses, and phone numbers to help direct victims to a safe place to go, Dolin said, or to direct alcohol abusers to rehab programs.

When The Enterprise recently interviewed teenagers charged with vandalism, the youth stated that they were bored, had nothing to do, and that’s what led to their vandalism. Dolin said, in his experience, New Scotland youth are the opposite of bored and are often very busy.

In vandalism cases, Dolin has found that he is dealing with troubled youth, which is specific to each person’s particular circumstance, rather than a problem with the community’s not offering the youth anything to do.

For sentencing, Dolin said he attempts community service if he thinks it will work.
"Community service gives you a chance to see if the person is genuinely remorseful," Dolin said. And, it is a good punishment for teenagers, because a fine, since they typically don’t have money, is often paid for by their parents, which wrongfully punishes the parent not the child, he said.
With first-time offenders, especially young offenders, Dolin said, "You have to take into consideration how it will damage their future."
If convicted of a misdemeanor, Dolin said, "It sticks with them for the rest of their life, so that’s a serious penalty."
But there are "some hard-core people" who need actual jail time, and community service won’t work, Dolin said. It’s up to the judge to assess, in a short period of time, a person’s character, Dolin said.

When there is the potential for probation or jail time of 90 days or more, the Albany County Department of Probation produces a pre-sentencing report, where the department interviews the defendant, and evaluates the person’s character, then makes a recommendation to the judge. The report usually covers the person’s family life and whether he or she is serious about a job or education, Dolin said.
For lesser cases, however, Dolin said, he alone has about 15 minutes to detect the person’s character, so he has to be a "good judge of character," Dolin said.

He is good at this, Dolin said, because of his 12 years of experience and because he raised three teenagers of his own.

Dolin said a defendant in his court is always free to speak, which he always encourages.