Photo by Miranda Pederson/Daily News Family court judge candidates (from left) Joy Denton, Catherine Holderfield, Osi Onyekwuluje and Dixie Satterfield participate Tuesday in a candidates forum at WKYU-TV at Western Kentucky University.

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The four candidates for Warren County Family Court judge faced off in a forum Tuesday night at Western Kentucky University, produced by and broadcast live on WKYU-TV.

Joy Denton said she's running for the position because she's seen the impact a judge can have on families.

Catherine Holderfield touted her experience as a judge. She has been handling a current district court docket, which will become the responsibility of this new family court position, in circuit court since being appointed by Gov. Ernie Fletcher a year and a half ago.

Dedication to public service and expertise in constitutional law led Osi Onyekwuluje to run for the judge position - he even whipped out a copy of the U.S. Constitution to prove his point.

“I've dedicated my life to public service, and being a judge is the next logical progression,” he said.

Dixie Satterfield touted his 37 years experience in law, as well as seven years as a judge pro-tem hearing cases on codependence and domestic violence.

Denton, a family law attorney, says she is currently handling more cases as a private attorney than all her opponents combined.

Before becoming a judge, Holderfield said, her entire practice for 15 years focused on family law.

“I've tried more than 630 juvenile cases,” she said.

Onyekwuluje referred to himself as a general practitioner of law, but focused more throughout the night on other work - he serves on several boards involving helping abused and at-risk children, such as the Barren River Area Child Advocacy Center and the Warren County Sheriff's Department Reach for Your Dreams program, he said.

“I've done a lot of work for families,” he said.

Experience handling unique custody issues and trying cases involving infanticide, murder, suicide and other issues have made Satterfield ready for the position, he said.

“I've spent 37 years preparing to be a family court judge,” Satterfield said.

When asked how he would handle drug-abuse issues, Onyekwuluje said parents need to be held accountable for the actions of their children.

“Most of the time when children get in trouble, it's because the parents aren't parenting. A lack of discipline is why children get in trouble,” he said.

He then recommended starting a teen court, which he said other communities are using to great effect, to help with drug issues. Teens respond better when they hear information from their peers about not doing drugs, he said.

Holderfield later pointed out that she is already overseeing a teen court.

Satterfield agreed that the responsibility for teen drug use falls to parents.

“We need to make sure parents act responsibly and act as mentors and role models for children,” he said. “It's not the responsibility of the police department or schools to discipline or raise children.”

When situations arise with drugs in the home, they should be checked on, and if necessary, the children should be removed, Satterfield said.

Denton also focused on child safety,and pointed out that Warren County has a number of services available for people with substance abuse issues. The key, she said, is to match people with the appropriate services.

“But if it's necessary to remove children from the home, then that's what will happen,” Denton said.

It's distressing that the area has around 200 children in foster care, most because of substance- or alcohol-abuse issues at home, Holderfield said.

The key is for those juveniles to be children and grow up to be productive members of society, she said, and if parents want help, there are resources for them.

“You can't control how their parents choose to live,” Holderfield said.

When questioned about any personal and professional experience that would enable them to deal with the financial issues that would face a family court judge, Denton, Satterfield and Holderfield all cited their previous experience running law firms.

Denton also mentioned her undergraduate degree is in business, while Satterfield cited his early life experiences working construction and other hands-on jobs. Holderfield pointed toward her current experience with the family court docket.

Onyekwuluje, however, dismissed the need for business experience - “All a judge needs is a pencil and a calculator to divide property,” Onyekwuluje said.

State representative's race

A second forum - focused on the 21st District state representative race between incumbent Republican Jim DeCesare and Democratic challenger Malcolm Cherry, both of Bowling Green - was held immediately afterward, and focused on ideas for economic growth.

Right-to-work legislation - in which workers could not be forced to join a union as a condition of employment - needs to be brought to Kentucky to improve the economy, DeCesare said.

“There have been 3,000 jobs created within the district since I took office,” he said, but added that the legislation would attract new businesses and improve wages for workers.

“People tell me it's ‘right to work for less,' ” he said. “I tell them, without it, it's ‘right to work for less jobs.' ”

Cherry, however, said right-to-work is something Gov. Ernie Fletcher has used to divide Kentucky voters. He pointed to a Louisiana State University study that showed, of 26 reasons companies decide to move to an area, right-to-work laws placed 24th.

DeCesare countered that a University of Louisville study showed right-to-work legislation would create 9,500 new jobs within four years.

Kentucky's lack of right-to-work legislation didn't stop UPS from bringing more than 5,000 new jobs to Kentucky, Cherry said.

Instead, Cherry suggested the area needs to invest in alternative fuels to continue its economic growth, and tax reductions should be offered to help facilities sell 85 percent ethanol fuel and for facilities that produce it. These alternatives, he said, would help grow the local economy and reduce dependence on foreign oil, he said.

The alternative minimum tax for small business also needs to repealed, Cherry said.

Cherry also criticized DeCesare for voting against last year's legislative budget, which would have provided $1.8 billion to the area without Fletcher's line-item vetoes.

“I would vote against that legislation again in a minute,” DeCesare said, because the budget placed the state more than $2 billion in debt.

“We can't continue tax-and-spend policies in Frankfort,” he said.

DeCesare has not followed through on his promise to be fiscally responsible for this area, Cherry said during his closing. He voted against needed items, yet voted for a raise for himself.

DeCesare fired back, saying Cherry has shown himself to be a tax-and-spend liberal.