TOPEKA — Kansas Gov. Laura Kelly will decide which of three finalists will become a district judge within the 31st Judicial District.
Iolan Tod Davis and Thomas Mikulka of Yates Center — both of whom serve as magistrate judges within the 31st district — and Dennis Depew of Neodesha, a deputy attorney general within the Kansas attorney general’s office, are the finalists tapped by a district nominating commission this week.
Kelly has 60 days to make her selection.
The new district judge position was among several certified by a Supreme Court administrative order, after the position was funded by state lawmakers.
Applicants were interviewed this week in Yates Center.
The 31st Judicial District Nominating Commission consists of Justice Evelyn Wilson as the nonvoting chair; Richard Pringle, Chanute; Nancy Burns and John Chenoweth, Fredonia; Douglas Depew, Neodesha; Craig Mentzer, Neosho Falls; Shelia Lampe, Piqua; Donald Greg Taylor, Stark; Zelda Schlotterbeck, Yates Center.
The 31st Judicial District is composed of Allen, Neosho, Wilson, and Woodson counties.
