Howard plans run for county judge

Howard spoke about why he decided to run for Columbia County judge after 31 years as an attorney.

“It’s not just one factor — when you become a lawyer you think about how can you serve the people in the best way,” Howard said. “There’s been other times in life when I thought about running for judge, but it just wasn’t right at the time. My children were younger or I didn’t think I would have the experience and the ability to be the best possible judge. I’ve been a lawyer for 31 years so I’m at the point where I had enough experiences that you can draw on.”

If elected, Howard plans to improve the different types of courts in the area.

“The system is set up for a lot of reasons to control what one person can do,” Howard said. “It can’t be set up where a judge can come in and say I’m going to change everything and do something different. What can be done is to try to expand and encourage treatment court, veterans court and youth court, and perhaps consider other aspects of family court.”

“In Greene County, they have a pilot program where they get social workers involved at the very beginning. In family court, if you make disbarring comments about someone and then after trying and work out visitation, custody, transportation and things of that matter, you can get to the point where it’s intractable. Sometimes in family court, people make allegations and say he or she is crazy, etc. Once you say things like this about someone, how easy is it to develop a relationship with that person when you’re looking out for the best interest of the children.”

Howard talked about what he wants to accomplish if he is elected.

“When you become county judge, you have some ideas on what you can accomplish, and you can accomplish a whole lot,” Howard said. “Certain judges that work in the treatment court aspect, people that have substance and alcohol abuse issues, those judges enjoy their jobs the most because you can accomplish something. When people serve in the military, they see a lot of painful things that can cause PTSD, which can lead to them abusing substances — should something like this be looked at and treated differently? I believe that’s accurate. They don’t get a pass, and things like this should be looked at in the context of the whole person, and I think that’s important.”

Howard said his greatest strength is the ability to hear all sides.

“This sports analogy is pretty good: As a judge, you’re more of a referee,” he said. “Some referees call it tighter than others and some get more involved. Your job as a judge is see that justice is done. You don’t want to be an activist judge, but you don’t want to be a passive judge, either. I think my strengths are that when I was younger I look at things from a perspective of a 25 or 30-year-old, and as time goes by you say, Oh jeez, everything is not so black-and-white. I didn’t realize that there’s more to the situation than one would think.

“After a while, you might come to the realization that this person had a valid point, whereas, at an earlier time in life, you might’ve not been able to see and understand it. Experience is a really important thing — being able and willing to look at their perspective, their side, their position is where my strengths will lie.”

Howard has practiced law in Columbia County since 1992. He is the Columbia County First Assistant Public Defender and operates his private law office at 118 Green St. in Hudson. He has served twice as the president of the Hudson Rotary Club, served on the boards of the Columbia Golf and County Club, Columbia County Association in the City of New York, Columbia County United Way, Hudson Area Library Association, Salvation Army and Hudson Boys and Girls Club.

He is a graduate of Hudson High School, Davidson College and Brooklyn Law School, where he was a member of the International Law Journal. In 2012 he received the New York State Defenders Association Wilfred R. O’Connor Award, presented annually to the New York State defense attorney who exemplifies the client-centered sense of justice, persistence and compassion that characterized O’Connor’s life.