About Me
I am a life-long Republican and a 30-year resident of Denton County. After separating from the Air Force in September 1992, I moved to The Colony to complete my master’s degree at UNT. My intention was to complete my degree, then apply for a commission as an education and training officer in the Air Force. Due to the reduction in force during the mid-1990s, that didn’t pan out. In the years that followed, I worked at 3 different Fortune 500 companies in leadership development, organizational development, and human resource development. In 2002, I went back to UNT and completed a second Masters in counseling. I was beginning a marriage and family counseling practice when I decided to run for the open seat for JP2. I have been serving as your Justice of the Peace in Precinct 2 since January 1, 2007, and I am running for a 5th and final term to keep to the promise I made in 2006 that I would only seek 5 terms if reelected.
Judicial Philosophy
While my values and beliefs are traditional and conservative, when I am on the bench, I am a strict constitutionalist. My ideas and beliefs do not play a role in my decision-making; The law that applies to a specific case and the facts that are presented in court is what matters most. I will apply the law to the facts even if it means making a decision I don’t like. The legislative branch is responsible for making the laws, not the judiciary. My thoughts and ideas do come into play when sentencing in criminal and truant conduct cases. I do take into account all aspects of the case and the defendant when setting fines and sanctions. It is my responsibility to ensure the punishment is enshrined in justice, while also attempting to stop the behavior that brought the defendants in front of me.
Court Management
I run a fiscally conservative court. Since taking office there has been a 53% increase in case load, yet I have reduced the operating expenses by almost 20% without the need to increase staffing. This has been accomplished through my background in organizational development and using all the technology available to the court through our case management software. There are additional technologies I am in the process of implementing that will continue to reduce the workload on the staff as our caseload continues to increase. I do my best to run this court with business sense because I know it is the tax payers who finance the operations of this office.
Support
I appreciate all the support that I have been given throughout these last 16 years and hope to continue to run this court for a final 4 years. If you have any questions or would like additional information, you can contact me at judge@reelectjames.com or visit www.ReElectJames.com.