Staff Writer
The Fourth Judicial Circuit is known throughout the state for its professionalism and collegiality, and that effort was furthered Friday as the Juvenile, Dependency and Guardian ad Litem Section of the Jacksonville Bar Association hosted its first Juvenile Judges Panel Luncheon at the Duval County Courthouse.
Circuit Judges Henry Davis, Dan Wilensky, Thomas Beverly and Don Lester, and Magistrates Leonard Bass and Denise Delorenzo met with a crowd of over 50 people to discuss juvenile court issues.
“It’s a great way for attorneys to meet judges outside of the courtroom and ask questions you might not be able to in court,” said Elizabeth Ondriezek, chair of the Juvenile, Dependency and Guardian ad Litem Section. “It’s also a good way to encourage collegiality and professionalism in the circuit.”
Section member Jodi Miles moderated the panel discussion with questions that were both submitted by e-mail and from attendees at the event. The panel members were asked about their favorite part about juvenile court.
“My favorite part is trying to figure out how we can help these kids function without parents,” said Davis. “So they can have a chance to be productive members of society.”
Wilensky was fascinated by the reach and effect of decisions made in juvenile court.
“We have an opportunity to affect generations of people with the work that we do,” said Wilensky. “I really enjoy what I do. We have an impact on people everyday.”
He also commented on the difficulties of the job.
“I’m usually at the courthouse pretty late, so I end up signing a lot of warrants. Some of those are used to bust meth labs,” said Wilensky. “We did four or five of those this month. Usually, the day after the warrants are executed, we see the kids that were living in those houses in court. The people are cooking the meth up in their bedrooms. The difficult part is that sometimes there isn’t a resolution to a situation.”
Though he recently took the bench at the start of the month, Lester had some tips for attorneys appearing in his courtroom. He explained that it was best for all parties involved to maintain proper decorum in the courtroom and he didn’t like two people talking at the same time.
“If someone is making an argument, let them finish and then make your statement,” said Lester. “I don’t like it when people step on each other trying to make their point.”
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