During his time as Jefferson County Court Judge, Democrat Kim Martusewicz says he has handled 5,000 cases, making him the busiest felony judge in the state outside of New York City. 

He's hoping that experience will earn him another term.

"For the past ten years, I've had to manage that type of case load and to coordinate all the various activities that have to go on in connection with the disposition of that many cases," said Martusewicz (pictured on the right).

Republican Challenger John Hallett is a judge in the town of LeRay and a lawyer.  

He thinks the growing number of cases is cause for concern.

"That tells us that something was not done right the first time a person went through the system.  That's why careful attention needs to be paid to each individual when they're sentenced," said Hallett.

Hallett (pictured on the left) says too many people are repeat offenders. 

He says if he's elected, he wants to pay particular attention to the needs of victims and making sure the punishment fits the crime.

"I want to make sure that we have a court that doesn't absorb taxpayer dollars but provides a genuine service to Jefferson County," said Hallett.
 
Martusewicz says he has saved taxpayer dollars. 

He says although the number of cases has gone up, the number of grand jury indictments handed up has gone down. 

Martusewicz attributes that to his felony screening process - conferencing with the parties involved to possibly reach a solution before bringing in a grand jury.

"If every one of these cases, every one of these 5,000 cases went to trial, there would be an enormous burden on the taxpayers of our area," said Martusewicz.

Looking ahead, Martusewicz says he expects there to be challenges ahead as the area grows. 

He says he hopes to work with state and local governments to deal with them. 

Hallett says he thinks his new approach to the court system will make any challenges in the future easier to face.