Brian Sullivan (Michigan)
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1999 - Present
2029
26
Brian Sullivan is a judge of the Michigan 3rd Circuit Court. He assumed office in 1999. His current term ends on January 1, 2029.
Sullivan ran for re-election for judge of the Michigan 3rd Circuit Court. He won in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Biography
Education
Sullivan received a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Monteith College of Wayne State University in 1977. After some post-graduate studies at Harvard University, he enrolled at the Detroit College of Law, where he earned his J.D. in January of 1983. He later earned a master's degree in philosophy from Holy Apostles College and Seminary in 2008.[1]
Career
Sullivan began his career in 1983 working for the law firm of Kitch, Suhrheinrich' Later that year, he became an assistant prosecuting attorney for Wayne County. He worked in that position until 1988. That year, he worked briefly for ANR Pipeline before joining the firm of Rutledge, Manion. He was then of counsel to the firm of Thomas, DeGrood & Witenoff, P.C. from 1990 until his judicial election in 1998.
Sullivan also worked as the director of Free Legal Services for Indigents under Monsignor Clement Kern of the Holy Trinity Legal Clinic from 1979 to 1998 and was an instructor of research writing and advocacy at the Detroit College of Law from 1982 to 1990. Since 2009, he has taught as an adjunct professor at Cooley Law School.[1]
Elections
2022
See also: Municipal elections in Wayne County, Michigan (2022)
General election
General election for Michigan 3rd Circuit Court (15 seats)
The following candidates ran in the general election for Michigan 3rd Circuit Court on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ | Wanda Evans (Nonpartisan) | 8.6 | 224,761 | |
| ✔ | Yvonna Abraham (Nonpartisan) | 8.3 | 217,062 | |
| ✔ | Melissa Cox (Nonpartisan) | 7.7 | 200,491 | |
| ✔ |  | Susan L. Hubbard (Nonpartisan) | 6.6 | 172,287 |
| ✔ | Sheila Ann Gibson Manning (Nonpartisan) | 6.5 | 170,263 | |
| ✔ | Kelly Ann Ramsey (Nonpartisan) | 6.5 | 169,933 | |
| ✔ |  | Susan Dabaja (Nonpartisan) | 6.4 | 167,865 |
| ✔ | Darnella Williams-Claybourne (Nonpartisan) | 6.4 | 167,093 | |
| ✔ | Brian Sullivan (Nonpartisan) | 6.3 | 163,331 | |
| ✔ | Mark Slavens (Nonpartisan) | 6.1 | 159,788 | |
| ✔ | Eric Cholack (Nonpartisan) | 6.1 | 158,631 | |
| ✔ | Martha Snow (Nonpartisan) | 6.1 | 158,054 | |
| ✔ | Alexis Glendening (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 155,054 | |
| ✔ | Patricia Fresard (Nonpartisan) | 5.9 | 154,448 | |
| ✔ | Muriel Hughes (Nonpartisan) | 5.7 | 148,465 | |
| Other/Write-in votes | 0.9 | 23,884 | ||
| Total votes: 2,611,410 | |||
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Withdrawn or disqualified candidates
- David Groner (Nonpartisan)
2016
Michigan held general elections for local judicial offices on November 8, 2016. A primary election occurred on August 2, 2016. The candidate filing deadline for incumbents was March 21, and the deadline for non-incumbents was April 19.[2] The following candidates ran in the 3rd Circuit general election (16 open seats).[3]
| 3rd Circuit, 16 open seats, General Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Candidate | ||
 Eric Cholack Incumbent | ||
| James Chylinski Incumbent | ||
| Patricia Fresard Incumbent | ||
| Alexis Glendening Incumbent | ||
| David A. Groner Incumbent | ||
| Cynthia Hathaway Incumbent | ||
| Susan L. Hubbard Incumbent | ||
| Muriel Hughes Incumbent | ||
| Timothy Kenny Incumbent | ||
| Sheila Ann Gibson Manning Incumbent | ||
| Bruce Morrow Incumbent | ||
| John A. Murphy Incumbent | ||
| Lita Masini Popke Incumbent | ||
| Mark Slavens Incumbent | ||
| Martha Snow Incumbent | ||
| Brian Sullivan Incumbent | ||
| Source: Michigan Department of State, "2016 General Election Official Results," November 28, 2016 | ||
2010
- See also: Michigan judicial elections, 2010
Sullivan was re-elected to the 3rd Circuit Court in the general election on November 2, 2010, along with 18 other judges.[4]
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Brian Sullivan did not complete Ballotpedia's 2022 Candidate Connection survey.
Noteworthy cases
Judge rules on prisoners unfairly denied parole
After a law school professor and his students filed a class-action lawsuit, Judge Brian Sullivan weighed in on the rights of parolees. According to the Michigan Daily, "the plaintiffs were given “parolable” life sentences prior to 1992 — sentences that judges gave while maintaining that prisoners could reasonably hope for parole." Judge Sullivan said judges prior to 1992 believed that this scenario would give a greater incentive to the prisoners. Sullivan said the Parole Board should examine the specifics. “Some people should be paroled, others should not,” he said. “If you kill someone and you don’t do well in prison, you shouldn’t be paroled. If you rehabilitate yourself, you should be reviewed for parole.”[5]
See also
2022 Elections
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ 1.0 1.1 Detroit Metropolitan Bar Association, "Resume and Judicial Questionnaire for Brian Robert Sullivan (dead link)
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 Michigan Election Dates," accessed December 7, 2015
- ↑ Michigan Secretary of State, "2016 Michigan Unofficial Candidate Listing," April 19, 2016
- ↑ Michigan Department of State, "2010 Michigan Official General Election Results," November 2, 2010
- ↑ Michigan Daily
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
