CLARKSTOWN JUDICIAL CONTEST: 3 CANDIDATES

Judge Scott B. Ugell, Candidate for Clarkstown Town Justice (Democratic, Republican, Conservative, Reform, etc.)

Judge Scott B. Ugell was first elected in 1991, when he was the youngest elected judge in modern Clarkstown Justice Court history. Judge Ugell presided over a special Domestic Violence Court and served along with Family Court judges and other local Judges and staff members. This special county committee on Domestic Violence studied ways to improve the courts for those involved in domestic violence matters.

Judge Ugell graduated from Syracuse University’s S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications in 1982, and Hofstra University’s School of Law in 1985. Judge Ugell is admitted to practice law in the State of New York, the Federal Southern and Eastern District of the United States District Court in New York, and the United States Supreme Court.

After graduating from Hofstra University Law School, Judge Ugell was a Deputy Town Attorney in the Town of Hempstead, the most densely populated Township in the State of New York. Thereafter, Judge Ugell was a Court Arbitrator in New York City Civil Courts and later became Assistant General Counsel to Pyramid Companies, the Syracuse, New York based shopping mall developer and management company.

Judge Ugell currently practices law in New City, New York where he focuses on family and Matrimonial Law, Real Estate Development, Bankruptcy Law, Debtor and Creditor rights and general and construction litigation.

Judge Ugell is involved in many charitable and social organizations. He is the Chairman of the Board for Big Brothers Big Sisters of Rockland, a Former Board Member of the Jewish Federation of Rockland, a former Board Member of the JCC-Y, a member of the New City Chamber of Commerce and contributes time and money to many charitable organizations. He is a member of the New York State Bar Association, the Rockland County Bar Association where is Former co-chair of the Bankruptcy Committee, Westchester Bar Association, American Bar Association and the Rockland County Magistrates Association where he was a past president.

Judge Ugell lives in New City, New York. Judge Ugell has two grown daughters, Rebecca who graduated from the University of Delaware this past May and Sari who is married to Ziv Schwartz, where she is a pediatric nurse, and Ziv is in his third year at Downstate Medical School in Brooklyn, New York.

Endorsements:

Rockland County PBA, Clarkstown PBA, IBEW 363, Rockland County Building Trades Council, Grand Council of United Emerald Societies represnting Firefighters, Sanitation workers, NYS Courts, NYS corrections, Rockland County Central Labor Council representing IBEW 503,

Clarkstown Teachers, CSEA, CWA 1107, North Rockland Teachers, HVALF

Aimee Pollak, Candidate for Clarkstown Town Justice (Democratic, Independence, Women’s Equality)

My name is Aimee Pollak and I plan to become the first woman elected to Clarkstown Justice Court.  I am a first-time candidate running against two 25 year incumbents.  I have the intelligence, experience and character that we need to change the face of our local courts. I have lived in Clarkstown since age 6 and I am a proud product of Clarkstown public schools.  I graduated from both Yale University and NYU Law School with high honors.  At NYU, I was elected to the Law Review and served as a note editor.

I have dedicated my legal career to public service.  I clerked for Judge Wilfred Feinberg on the Second Circuit federal court of appeals.  I then worked as a civil prosecutor with the NYS Attorney General’s Office.  I am currently an attorney for the Legal Aid Society of Rockland County, where I have defended hundreds of local homeowners from foreclosure and eviction.  In each job, I have had one goal – to help make our community a better place.

WHY I AM THE RIGHT CHOICE

I am the only candidate willing to pledge that the job of Clarkstown Justice will be my only job and first priority.  My opponents maintain busy private practices, which require them to juggle their obligations to their paying clients with their responsibilities to the public as judges.  When I win, I will leave my current job and give 100 percent of my attention to the job of town judge.  With no other work obligations, I will ensure that every civil dispute and criminal plea is timely heard and thoughtfully resolved.  Shorter delays for court dates, longer courtroom hours and faster decisions will be the new normal in my courtroom.  Finally, I have the proper demeanor for public service as a judge:  I am patient, fair, honest, and I treat all people with respect.

ENDORSEMENTS: 

Clarkstown & Rockland County Teachers’ Associations; Rockland Women’s Political Caucus; Rockland United; NYS Senator David Carlucci; NYS Assembly Members Kenneth P. Zebrowski and Ellen Jaffee; Rockland County Legislators Harriet Cornell and Aney Paul; The Honorable Victor Alfieri, Jr. (retired).

Rated “Qualified” by the Rockland County Bar Association.

Judge Craig E. Johns, Candidate for Clarkstown Town Justice, (Republican, Conservative, Working Families, Reform)

Judge Craig E. Johns is the only judicial candidate in the Clarkstown Town Justice race to receive Rockland County Bar Association’s highest, most prestigious rating: “Well Qualified”. He has served Clarkstown residents as Town Justice for 24 years and has made it a priority to always be available to the police and the public, rendering justice to all equally, swiftly, pursuant to the law and yet with compassion when appropriate.

Clarkstown, the third largest town court in NYS, a suburb of NYC, has 2 large malls and 7 major highways. During court hours, nights and weekends, Judge Johns arraigns defendants charged with felonies, including drug sales, grand larceny and identity theft, residing in NYC with long criminal records. He sets high bail to insure the community is protected and the defendants return to court.

Judge Johns is also aware of the rise in prescription drug addiction leading to heroin addiction. This affects our children, our friends and family members. He founded and presided over the Rockland County Drug Court receiving no additional remuneration to address these issues, mandating treatment, education and job training, often saving lives. He is the Acting Domestic Violence Judge in Clarkstown and has presided over thousands of DWI cases.

Judge Johns is a Clarkstown native, resides in Nanuet with his wife and three sons. A practicing trial attorney for 38 years, he maintains a private practice, in compliance with New York Judiciary Law because he believes this benefits people that appear in the Clarkstown Justice Court. He understands what it is like to be on the “other side of the bench”, and how frustrating it can be if the judge is not cognizant of their concerns and is not patient in giving them their full day in court, something that may very well only occur once in their lifetime.

Judge Johns’ qualifications and experience help to maintain Clarkstown as one of the safest Towns in NYS

Endorsements

Rockland County PBA; Building and Construction Trades Council; Rockland Central Labor Council; IBEW Local Union 363

  Aimee Pollak, Craig Johns, Scott Ugell