Ashley McKathan, presiding circuit judge of the 22nd Judicial Circuit, has announced he will again be a candidate for Circuit Judge, Place No. 2, in the general election to be held Nov. 2, 2010.

In making the announcement, McKathan commented about the nature of his job.

“When serving in a judicial capacity, experience is invaluable,” he said. “It helps to have dealt with various situations that arise in people’s lives, to the extent that there is a real understanding of what might work in a particular case, as well as what really won’t work. I believe my experience has come to be an asset for the county.”

McKathan said he believes it is important for a judge to know the people he serves.

“In today’s society, perhaps due to limited resources, there is a great deal of pressure on judges to treat people as ‘blips’ on a computer screen,” he said. “I have resolutely resisted that view. The problems of people who find themselves caught up in legal proceedings are just as important as yours or mine.

“They deserve patient attention, and a real effort at individual justice. They shouldn’t just be run through the system. That has always been my feeling, and it always will be.”

McKathan also thanked the people of Covington County for the opportunity to serve as their judge, and said if re-elected he will continue to work for them.

“I have lived in south Alabama my whole life, except when I was in law school,” he said. “This is home to me. I find that folks in Covington County have a huge measure of both common sense, and decency, that seems to be missing in many other areas of the country. It is a pleasure to serve them.

“I appreciate the fact that my neighbors here have allowed me to be one of their judges, and I am respectfully seeking the county’s support in the upcoming election.”

McKathan, who is an independent candidate, will continue to run as an independent in 2010.

“I have enjoyed serving outside the pressures of politics for the last five years,” he said. “Simply put, being an independent officeholder means that nobody has to worry about political affiliations tainting what I do.”

McKathan lives in the Pleasant Home community with his wife, Rae, and his son, Sidney. He is active in his participation in his church in Dixie, Ala., and has served as a circuit court judge since 1991.