Five lawyers, including two supervisors from the Clark County prosecutor’s office, have applied to succeed Clark County Superior Court Judge Barbara Johnson, who plans to retire at the end of March.
Camara Banfield, John Fairgrieve, Denise Lukins, Christopher Ramsay and Bob Vukanovich had submitted applications to Gov. Jay Inslee’s office by Friday’s deadline.
The governor plans to appoint one of the candidates to Superior Court Position 6 in early March, said Nick Brown, Inslee’s general counsel.
Johnson — the first woman ever appointed to the Clark County Superior Court bench — is retiring March 31 after 28 years on the bench. Her successor will be required to seek election in November to complete the last two years of her four-year term.
Camara Banfield
Banfield, 42, of Vancouver is a Clark County senior deputy prosecutor who supervises the Child Justice Center. She last sought appointment to a judicial position in 2012 for which Judge Gregory Gonzales was ultimately selected. Since then, she said she has been working on building her experience. During a stint on the prosecuting attorney’s Major Crimes unit she handled homicide cases and now is a team leader for attorneys who prosecute child abuse cases.
“I feel like being a judge is one of the best ways to have an impact on the community and to effect change,” Banfield said. “It’s a huge responsibility but one that I would really like to take on.”
Banfield, who grew up in Clark County, graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law in 2003 and went to work for the Vancouver City Attorney’s Office as a prosecutor, working misdemeanor, felony and domestic violence cases. She joined the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office in 2004 as a deputy prosecutor and was promoted to senior deputy prosecutor four years ago.
John Fairgrieve
Fairgrieve, 54, of Vancouver is Clark County’s chief deputy prosecutor and has worked in the prosecutor’s office for nearly 20 years. Earlier this month, he sought appointment to Position 3, previously held by retired Judge John Nichols. Inslee passed him over in favor of civil lawyer Derek Vanderwood of Camas, who could take office as early as next month. A majority — 51.3 percent — of 113 respondents to a Clark County Bar Association poll indicated they preferred Fairgrieve for the Position 3 appointment.
Fairgrieve said he applied for Position 6 before the governor announced his decision.
“I’d like to continue to serve the public, and I think I have the background, experience and maturity to be a judge, more than I did when I was a younger deputy prosecuting attorney,” Fairgrieve said.
He said he holds a higher position than Banfield but is not her direct supervisor.
Fairgrieve graduated from the University of Oregon School of Law and began his career in October 1993 at a small Portland law firm, which handled federal bankruptcy, personal injury, criminal defense and attorney malpractice cases. He worked for the Yakima County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office from March to November 1994, when he joined the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office.
He worked his way up the ranks in Clark County until he was promoted to chief deputy prosecutor more than three years ago.
He served on the Clark County Bar Association’s board for seven years, including a term as president from September 2011 to August 2012.
Denise Lukins
Lukins, 55, of Vancouver is a civil attorney who practices real estate, business and animal-related law such as dog day care centers. This is the first time she has sought a judicial appointment.
She graduated from Lewis & Clark Law School in 1995 and went directly into private practice with Blair Schaefer Hutchison & Wolfe. She then joined Salmon Creek Law Offices and now operates her own firm, the Law Office of Denise Lukins. She also is a hearings examiner for Clark County Animal Control.
“I’m a longtime resident of Clark County,” she said. “I’ve lived here since 1984, and I’ve been practicing law here for 20 years. I care about the community, and I feel I can bring compassion and experience to the bench.”
Christopher Ramsay
Ramsay, 53, of Vancouver is a criminal defense lawyer and former prosecutor who has practiced law for 26 years.
He said he’s always wanted to be a judge and has tailored his career to that end. This is the fourth time he has sought appointment to a judicial seat in Clark County.
Ramsay joined the Denver District Attorney’s Office after graduating from the University of Idaho College of Law in 1988. He worked as a prosecutor until 2003, when he moved to Vancouver, his wife’s hometown.
He joined a private criminal defense firm, Morse Bratt Andrews & Foster, then opened his own practice in November 2006.
“I think that makes me uniquely qualified in this group to serve the county as the next Superior Court judge,” he said in a past interview with The Columbian.
In 2004 and 2005, he volunteered by representing homeless people with legal difficulties.
He’s been an adjunct law professor at Metropolitan College in Denver and Washington State University Vancouver.
He also has been an evaluator for the Clark County Mock Trial.
Bob Vukanovich
Vukanovich, 57, of Battle Ground practices criminal and family law out of his private law office in Vancouver. In November, he unsuccessfully sought election to Position 5, filled by Judge Bernard Veljacic.
“I want the position because I want to make a difference, and I believe I can make a difference,” Vukanovich said in a past interview with The Columbian. “I have broad-based experience. I’ve represented criminal defendants, mothers, fathers, grandparents, corporations and business people.”
He has said the variety of cases he’s handled during his 26-year career has prepared him to make the difficult decisions left to judges.
After graduating in 1988 from Southwestern Law School-Los Angeles, he practiced real estate and business law in California and then went into real estate development in the greater Portland area. He served as counsel for Thompson Construction Co. in Portland from 1997 to 1999, when he founded his private practice.
He is a past president of the Clark County Bar Association. He also has volunteered for the Volunteer Lawyers Program and the Clark County Mock Trial program, in which high school students learn the law by trying a mock case in front of a county judge.
The county has 10 Superior Court judge positions. Superior courts are the highest state trial courts, hearing felony and larger civil matters. Superior Court judges are paid $156,363 per year, plus benefits.
