Steve Hurley was appointed municipal judge by the Bristol Village Board at Monday’s meeting.
The appointment was necessitated bv the Dec. 15 death of Fred Ekornaas, who was the sitting municipal judge.
A little over a year was left in Ekornaas’ term. If that had been longer, the village would have held a special election, village administrator Randy Kerkman said.
Two people interested in filling the post — Hurley and George Yee — addressed the board Monday, sharing a little about their background and addressing questions from the board.
Hurley is a retired law enforcement office. He served most of his career in Racine, where he rose through the ranks to assistant chief. After retiring in his early 50s, he took a position as chief of the Town of Geneva Police Department for six years. He is now fully retired again. He and his family have lived in Bristol for 27 years.
Yee is the office manager for the Racine County District Attorney’s office. As part of his duties there he oversees traffic court. A Kenosha native, he and his family have lived in Bristol for 16 years.
Asked if staff had a recommendation, Kerkman said both candidates were well qualified, but he favored Hurley based on his similarity in background to Ekornaas, who he credited with running a “beautiful” court.
Village President Mike Farrell said he knew Yee from a board they both served on. He favored Yee’s experience with running a court.
Trustee Kris Kordecki moved to appoint Hurley, which was seconded by Trustee Carolyn Owens. Kordecki said she favored Hurley due to the staff recommendation since they work with the municipal court.
Appointing Hurley passed 4 to 1 with Farrell voting against.
“It’s tough to make a decision when you have such well qualified candidates,” Trustee John McCabe said.
Hurley’s appointment will become effective Jan 1, 2022. The municipal judge position will be up for election in April 2023.
