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Annette Berry
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2031
Annette Berry is a judge of the Michigan 3rd Circuit Court. Her current term ends on January 1, 2031.
Berry ran for re-election for judge of the Michigan 3rd Circuit Court. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.
Biography
Berry received her undergraduate degree from the University of Michigan-Dearborn (1983) and her J.D. from Michigan State University Law School (formerly the Detroit College of Law).[1][2]
Berry began her career as an assistant attorney general in Michigan. There she served as legal counsel for the departments of: Licensing and Regulation, Education, Consumer and Industry Affairs (Insurance and Banking Division), and the Secretary of State. She worked for almost eight years as a prosecutor in the criminal division, where she specialized in white collar, economic, and conspiracy crimes. She was also the chief prosecutor for gaming prosecutions from Detroit casinos during that time. She was elected to the circuit court in 2000. In 2011, she became the president of the Michigan Judges Association. She also teaches as an adjunct professor at the University of Michigan-Dearborn and the Ave Maria School of Law in Florida.[1]
Elections
2024
See also: Municipal elections in Wayne County, Michigan (2024)
General election
General election for Michigan 3rd Circuit Court (18 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Michigan 3rd Circuit Court on November 5, 2024.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Annette Berry (Nonpartisan) | 7.6 | 269,327 | |
| ✔ | Karen Braxton (Nonpartisan) | 6.3 | 224,216 | |
| ✔ | Bridget Hathaway (Nonpartisan) | 6.3 | 223,596 | |
| ✔ | Jerome Cavanagh (Nonpartisan) | 6.3 | 222,848 | |
| ✔ |  | Regina Thomas (Nonpartisan) | 6.2 | 219,950 |
| ✔ | Kathleen McCarthy (Nonpartisan) | 6.0 | 212,613 | |
| ✔ | Tracy Green (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 210,061 | |
| ✔ | Kevin Cox (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 207,791 | |
| ✔ |  | Dana Margaret Hathaway (Nonpartisan) | 5.8 | 205,401 |
| ✔ | Leslie Smith (Nonpartisan) | 5.3 | 188,925 | |
| ✔ |  | Qiana Lillard (Nonpartisan) | 5.1 | 179,388 |
| ✔ | Catherine Heise (Nonpartisan) | 5.1 | 178,898 | |
| ✔ | Edward Ewell Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 5.1 | 178,826 | |
| ✔ | Prentis Edwards Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 4.8 | 171,589 | |
| ✔ | Paul Cusick (Nonpartisan) | 4.7 | 167,134 | |
| ✔ | Adel Harb (Nonpartisan) | 4.6 | 164,484 | |
| ✔ | Lawrence Elassal (Nonpartisan) | 4.6 | 161,962 | |
| ✔ | Charles Hegarty (Nonpartisan) | 4.3 | 152,798 | |
| Total votes: 3,539,807 | |||
 = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Nonpartisan primary election
The primary election was canceled.
Endorsements
Ballotpedia did not identify endorsements for Berry in this election.
2018
General election
General election for Michigan 3rd Circuit Court (16 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Michigan 3rd Circuit Court on November 6, 2018.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | | Dana Margaret Hathaway (Nonpartisan) | 7.8 | 248,761 |
| ✔ |  | Deborah Thomas (Nonpartisan) | 7.6 | 240,778 |
| ✔ | Annette Berry (Nonpartisan) | 7.5 | 239,572 | |
| ✔ | Karen Braxton (Nonpartisan) | 7.1 | 227,278 | |
| ✔ | Jerome Cavanagh (Nonpartisan) | 7.0 | 221,566 | |
| ✔ | Kathleen McCarthy (Nonpartisan) | 6.7 | 212,946 | |
| ✔ | Kevin Cox (Nonpartisan) | 6.5 | 208,304 | |
| ✔ | Leslie Smith (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 188,721 | |
| ✔ | Catherine Heise (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 187,777 | |
| ✔ | | Qiana Lillard (Nonpartisan) | 5.6 | 178,880 |
| ✔ | Prentis Edwards Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 5.5 | 175,133 | |
| ✔ | Gregory Bill (Nonpartisan) | 5.4 | 171,153 | |
| ✔ | Adel Harb (Nonpartisan) | 5.3 | 168,962 | |
| ✔ | Edward Ewell Jr. (Nonpartisan) | 5.3 | 167,159 | |
| ✔ | Paul Cusick (Nonpartisan) | 5.2 | 165,694 | |
| ✔ | Charles Hegarty (Nonpartisan) | 4.9 | 156,625 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.7 | 21,211 | ||
| Total votes: 3,180,520 (100.00% precincts reporting) | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
| If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey. | ||||
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team. | ||||
2012
- See also: Michigan judicial elections, 2012
Berry was one of 17 candidates competing for 16 seats on the 3rd Circuit Court. Only one candidate was a non-incumbent. Berry was re-elected with 5.61 percent of the vote.[3] [4]
Bar association ratings
The Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association rated candidates running for judicial office in 2012. Candidates are given one of five ratings: Outstanding, Well Qualified, Qualified, Not Qualified or No Rating.
Berry was rated as Well Qualified.[5]
Selection method
- See also: Nonpartisan election of judges
The 221 judges of the Michigan Circuit Courts are selected in an identical manner, each serving six-year terms. They are chosen in nonpartisan elections and must face re-election if they wish to continue serving. Candidates are placed on the ballot via nonpartisan primaries or by nominating petitions.[6] Sitting judges who reach age 70 are allowed to serve out the remainder of their term.[7]
Selection of the chief judge
The chief judges of the circuit courts are appointed by the state supreme court to two-year terms.[6]
Qualifications
To be elected to either of these courts, a judge must:[6]
- be a qualified elector of his or her district;
- be licensed to practice law in the state;
- have at least five years of law practice experience; and
- be under the age of 70.
Campaign themes
2024
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Annette Berry did not complete Ballotpedia's 2024 Candidate Connection survey.
Noteworthy cases
Berry rules in gruesome beheading case
Annette Berry presided over the case of two teenagers, Jean Pierre Orlewicz, who killed a man in a garage, and his accomplice Alexander Letkemann. Letkemann plead guilty to second-degree murder and agreed to testify against Orlewicz. Letkemann received 20-30 years. Orlewicz received a mandatory life sentence. In addressing Orlewicz, Judge Berry stated, "There is a difference between mental illness in this country and evil. But your actions, sir, are tantamount to evil. No two ways about it.”[8][9]
See also
2024 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Cite error: Invalid
<ref>tag; no text was provided for refs namedlegalnews - ↑ University of Michigan-Dearborn, "CASL graduate, Honorable Annette Jurkiewicz Berry, to lead the Michigan Judges Association as 84th President," April 14, 2011
- ↑ Michigan Department of State, "Official 2012 General Election Results: 3rd Circuit Court," January 4, 2013
- ↑ Michigan Department of State, "2012 Unofficial Michigan Primary Candidate Listing," July 31, 2012
- ↑ Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, Judicial Candidate Evaluation Committee
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 6.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: Michigan," archived October 2, 2014
- ↑ Michigan Daily, "Washtenaw County judge announces early retirement," May 1, 2014
- ↑ Beheading was 'evil,' judge tells Orlewicz
- ↑ Lawyer says Dungeons and Dragons gamer was acting out a fantasy when he killed co-worker with a sword
Federal courts:
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of Michigan, Western District of Michigan • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of Michigan, Western District of Michigan
State courts:
Michigan Supreme Court • Michigan Court of Appeals • Michigan Circuit Court • Michigan Court of Claims • Michigan District Courts • Michigan Municipal Courts • Michigan Probate Courts
State resources:
Courts in Michigan • Michigan judicial elections • Judicial selection in Michigan
