Ninth Judicial Circuit Court Group 15: Jeffrey Ashton, Chris Mack and Alicia L. Peyton

The Orlando Sentinel Editorial Board interviews Jeffrey Ashton, Chris Mack and Alicia L. Peyton, candidates for Ninth Judicial Circuit Group 15.
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[@roundandsquareful]

Thank you to the Orlando Sentinel for doing these interviews because they're very helpful in letting us get to know the candidates.

[@RobinS70]

ashton was judge in casey anthing cases and was also charged with something to do with child abuse so he is out as far as me.

[@TrueSake]

Charges were dropped after accuser gave multiple conflicting accounts. DeSantis came after him but judges assigned to the case recused themselves, police department found no evidence of abuse and neither did the department of children and families.

[@TheVanegasReview]

All of these are so helpful!!! Thank you for this series!!’n

[@floridawildcat1104]

Ashton was the lead prosecutor in the Casey Anthony case. He did a horrible job on the case and Anthony walked free.

[@honestone490]

The incumbent Jeff Ashton has 2 relative newcomers in judicial politics running against him this year. Both opponents offer fresh new insight into operating the Ninth Court Circuit bench and we shouldn't take their words at all too lightly. No matter how we'd like to think that all judges strive to be impartial when it comes to judicial politics sadly that scary serpent often rears its ugly head. Often it just seems inevitable in order to finance a successful campaign you need to be attracting contributions from various new donors. It seems of all the 3 candidates here, only Chris Mack can proudly say he has financed his own campaign independently. He's received no special interest financial contributions to his campaign what-so- ever. That's very commendable to say the least and it speaks volumes for his professional and moral integrity demonstrated by his conduct in this race. If we are to believe Judge Ashton it seems that Atty Peyton has accepted over $100.000 in campaign financing from personal injury trial lawyers and she seemed unwilling to deny the claim at least when she made her closing statement. The judge apparently wanted to throw a little mud around at the end of the interview. However, Atty Peyton showing class and sophistication chose to take the higher road instead. Unlike Judge Ashton who obviously wanted to get down and dirty but that simply wasn't happening here in this interview. For the record in the past, Jeff Ashton has accepted major financial contributions in his eventual rise to power. We all know that. However, once you've been in public service over 43 years and your name like his is well known within the community, raising a large campaign war chest to run for judicial office or any other office for that matter is simply not really necessary. However, Judge Ashton conveniently failed to point that out in this insightful interview but that really comes as no great surprise to anyone who's politically minded. It's obvious that Judge Ashton wishes to simply maintain the status quo. His past years as a State Attorney and trial results are definitely open to public scrutiny. However, I think he's advanced beyond the era of the Casey Anthony trial for which we can now evaluate him based on his performance solely as a judge and not merely as a prosecuting attorney who lost some heart wrenching cases many of us already know about and some relive in bitter detail. It's obvious that in electing Alicia Peyton we will be electing a judge with a great deal of compassion and to the same degree that applies also with the choice of Chris Mack. Judge Ashton comes across more as a competent tenured bureaucrat. Someone where his decades of trial experience still carries much weight but often isn't by today's standards necessarily seen as being visionary. Consequently, I find it very difficult to recommend one particular candidate vs the other at his point. However, Judge Ashton is your safe bet to go with if you're someone leery about making any possible changes to the current system that exists. Like my dad was known to say on various occasions such as this, it's can be seen at times like "changing horses while in mid-stream." Consequently, base instead your decision of all 3 candidates on their individual merits alone. Hopefully you'll choose the candidate that best reflects your personal values and perception of justice. Choosing someone you'd like to see rendering verdicts not just now but also in your very near future. In the end, I'm confident you'll ultimately make the right choice that will benefit everyone in our Circuit.

[@Drushajainorlando]

Judge Ashton is not suitable for the judge. His dishonesty goes beyond court and extends to his personal life. He violated federal statues. Alicia Payton files frivolous suits and treats pro se like second class citizen. We endorse Chris Mack whole heartedly. Folks, this is the time you can make difference in this Country.

[@honestone490]

**** IMPORTANT ELECTION RESULTS ***** % of the Vote- - Alicia Peyton 48% Jeffrey Ashton 31% Chris Mack 20% - Since no candidate was able to garnish 50% or more of the vote, a runoff election will occur in November between the top 2 candidates Peyton and Ashton. Best Wishes to both candidates in the Fall.