‘Universally Respected’
MORE LETTERS . . .
To the Editor: As a civil litigator in Humboldt County for the past 24 years, I have come to know our local judges and what it takes to be a good judge. Steven Steward will be an excellent judge.
I have had the unique experience of being neighbors and friends with Steve and his family for several years. Steve is a dedicated family man with a commitment to our community and the ethical practice of law. He is tough and disciplined, but also approachable. He is experienced and decisive. His integrity and character are beyond reproach. He is universally respected by those who know him personally and work with him professionally.
These are the qualities a judge must have to manage a courtroom efficiently and fairly. These are the qualities Steve will bring to our judiciary if he is elected on June 7th. I endorse and support Steven Steward for judge of the Humboldt County Superior Court.
Nick Kloeppel, Arcata
To the Editor: Many thanks to Wendy Ring for her excellent appraisal of the problems facing traditional Medicare [“Medicare in Danger,” May Senior News, page 27]. The corporate forces that candidly and publicly aspire to completely privatize Medicare by the year 2030 are making serious inroads, with Medicare Advantage alone already enrolling nearly half of all Medicare recipients, and Direct Contracting Entities (DCEs) now active in 38 states.
It is up to us to stop this for-profit juggernaut. Please call your congressperson (for our 2nd District, that’s Jared Huffman, 202-225-5161) and President Biden (White House switchboard: 202-456-1111) and demand that all forms of privatization of Medicare stop now. No more Medicare Advantage, DCEs or ACO REACH — stop the plundering of the Medicare Trust Fund!
We want you, we need you, and we’d love for you to join our efforts to end profiteering from our health care. Contact healthcareforallhumboldt@
mailto:healthcareforallhumboldt@gmail.com
mailto:healthcareforallhumboldt@gmail.com gmail.com. For more information, go to healthcareforall. http://healthcareforall.org http://healthcareforall.org org or PNHP.org.
http://PNHP.org
Patty Harvey, Willow Creek To the Editor: I have come to know Steve Steward as a neighbor, friend and family man. Steve grew up in Southern California but came up to Humboldt to graduate from Humboldt State before launching his career as a legislative assistant for Congressmember Brad Sherman in Washington, D.C., followed by law school there.
After graduating, Steve joined a private practice in criminal defense work in Los Angeles. His attachment to this area brought him back to work in Humboldt as an assistant district attorney.
He and his family have established To the Editor: I am very excited to endorse Ben McLaughlin for Superior Court judge.
Ben has significant ties to the community in Humboldt County, having worked for both the Humboldt County District Attorney and Public Defender offices. That experience of advocating on both sides of a criminal case gives him a unique perspective that our local bench could benefit from.
As one of the most experienced attorneys in the Public Defender’s themselves in this area, with his two delightful daughters attending our local public elementary school. In our conversations, I have been impressed with Steve’s work ethic, integrity and recognition of inequities in our society — all necessary to stand by justice for all.
His professional background as a former defense attorney and a current assistant district attorney has contributed to an understanding of the complexity of human nature. I believe that he will apply this knowledge when making judicial decisions with intellect, probity and compassion.
Corinne Frugoni, M.D., Arcata Office, Ben generously offered his time to serve as a mentor to me when I was newly licensed to practice law. What I appreciate about Ben as an attorney and a mentor is that he is intellectually curious, and never hesitates to reach for the penal code or the evidence code to help solve a complex problem.
What we need are judges who understand the law and approach the work with compassion and lived experience, as Ben does.
Rosemary Deck, Eureka
