Traverse City -- District Judge John D. Foresman will retire after decades in the local judicial system, and several area officials have their eye on his job.
Foresman is chief judge of 86th District Court in Grand Traverse, Leelanau and Antrim counties. He won't seek re-election when his term is up next year, he said this week.Q
Foresman, 65, spent more than 30 years as a prosecutor and probate judge before his election to a six-year district court term in November 2004, and he's primed for retirement.
"I'm just ready ... I've been doing this a long time, and I'm looking forward to doing some different things," he said.
Foresman worked as an assistant prosecutor in Wayne County for three years before joining the Grand Traverse County prosecutor's office as an assistant in 1973. He was elected Grand Traverse prosecutor and served from 1977 to 1988.
He ran for probate judge and held that post from 1989 until 2001, then served as tribal prosecutor for the Grand Traverse Band of Ottawa and Chippewa Indians before his election to district court.
Several local attorneys said they'll run for Foresman's seat next year. Traverse City Commissioner Barbara Budros, Grand Traverse County Commissioner Mike Stepka and State Rep. Kevin Elsenheimer, R-Kewadin, all expressed interest.
Budros, who ran against Foresman in 2004, believes she's ready for the bench. She recently resigned after 11 years as 13th Circuit Court Judge Philip Rodgers' law clerk.
"I've been an attorney forever, it seems, and I've been heavily involved in the court system all along," she said.
Budros wants to help foster "therapeutic" court programs, such as District Judge Michael Haley's sobriety court and Foresman's mental health court.
"My primary interest would be to be in the position that I could make things happen that are good for the system."
Elsenheimer said he's interested in returning home to Traverse City.
He's spent several years as a state representative in Lansing, but said serving as Antrim County's assistant prosecutor was "one of the most satisfying times of my career."
"It would be an honor to serve as a judge in my hometown," said Elsenheimer, whose term is up at the end of 2010. "Regardless of what my future holds, I plan that future to be in northern Michigan."
Stepka said his 19 years of legal experience make him a viable candidate for the bench.
"I'm familiar with the court and its practices," he said. "I think I've got the experience. I think I've got the temperament and demeanor for the job."
As for Foresman, he'll spend his retirement playing more golf and traveling, he said, especially during the winter months.
"We'd like to get out of town in the winter a little more," he said. "It would be nice to get away from the snow."
