Lee County candidates prepare for primary

August 19, 2010

Florida: Seven candidates will compete for two vacancies on the Lee County Court in an upcoming primary election.

Four attorneys are seeking to replace Judge Radford R. Sturgis, who is retiring at the end of the year:

• Robert J. Branning has worked at the Office of the State Attorney in Fort Myers, has given legal training at the Lee County Criminal Justice Academy, and has practiced with the firm Goldberg, Racila, Sico & Noone. He started his own firm, along with Dennis Rohak, in 2008.

• Miguel C. Fernandez III has experience as an assistant state attorney, and a private practice lawyer. He said that his goals for the court are to: reduce the docket by effective adjudication of older cases, create shorter delays for attorneys and litigants and increase their understanding of judicial procedures.

• Frank Mann, Jr. is a private practice lawyer. His past experience includes working for the Lee County Electric Co-op and the Pavese Law Firm. He is also a Florida Supreme Court Certified Mediator. He said that his priorities for the court were: fairness/listening to everyone, making parties feel like they truly "had their day in court" and integrity.

• David J. Shestokas has worked as an attorney since 1987. He said that his focus was on, "respecting individuals' rights and time" through courtroom administration and community explanations.

The second judicial vacancy in Lee County has drawn two candidates:

• Judge Archie B. Hayward, Jr. is the incumbent. He was appointed to this in 2008 by Gov. Crist. Previously, he worked as a staff attorney with the Florida Rural Legal Service and, before that, as a public defender.

• Eric Feichthaler is the challenger. He is a former Mayor of Cape Coral (2005 - 2008) and is a Florida Supreme Court Certified Circuit Civil Mediator. His priorities for the court are: efficiency, community awareness and impartiality.

After the August 24th primary election, the top two vote getters for each seat (if no one candidate receives over 50% of the votes) will advance to the Nov. 2 general election.