Tomorrow is election day & we have lots of positions to vote for as most of the row offices are up for election, including but not limited to:
[ul]
[li]school board[/li][li]town supervisor[/li][li]county commissioner[/li][li]DA[/li][li]Sheriff[/li][li]Constable[/li][li]Clerk of Courts[/li][li]Controller[/li][li]Coroner[/li][li]Prothonotary[/li][li]Recorder of Deeds[/li][li]Register of Wills[/li][li]various court judges[/li][/ul]
I try to be an informed voter. No news organization endorses / makes recommendations. I can find bar association recommendations for some of the judicial positions, but not all of them. I have spent hours attempting to learn about the various candidates. Unfortunately, for many of them, this means their own (or their party’s) website. Sorry, I’m not going to waste my time on a marketing piece; of course I expect your website to paint you in glowing terms.
Since I also don’t believe that there’s a Republican or Democratic way to do certain things - autopsies, file papers, serve papers, transport criminals, etc., my political leanings really don’t come into play either.
That means it comes down to the tie-breaker, which candidate has the least negative points.
How do they get negative points?
Illegally placing their signs on local/county/state government owned property (since government can’t endorse any candidate), or owner-not-present property, like transit parking lots, utility right-of-ways, railroad overpasses, shopping center entrances, the back side of a golf course, etc. Especially the ones running for law enforcement positions; you’re breaking laws (trespassing, littering) trying to get elected to a position where you are tasked with enforcing them? Fat chance you’ll get my vote.
Phone calls. Yeah, your scumbag predecessors may have made an exception to make it legal for you to call me; however, you’re still disturbing me. I flat out don’t answer the house phone this time of year. Yet I still need to listen to it ring, & I still need to go over to the answering machine just about every day & delete all of the messages that you’d bothered to leave as it’s now full. No, I’m not going to vote for you just because you got some celebrity, or ex-governor, or current state senator to record a message for you.
In short, the more you bother me & the more I know your name, the less likely you’ll be to get my vote.
Duties of some of the positions: [spoiler]
Duties of the Prothonotary
The Prothonotary is the elected civil clerk of the Court of Common Pleas and is responsible for recording all civil procedures before the court. This official signs and seals all writs and processes numerous other documents of the Court of Common Pleas.
The Office of Prothonotary is responsible for the recording and filing of legal papers of a widely diversified character such as:
Administers oaths and affirmations
Change of name
Custody
District Justice appeals
Divorce
Driver’s license suspension appeals
Federal income tax liens
Judgments
Mechanics liens
Medical malpractice
Personal injury
Protection from abuse
School audits
This office also processes passport applications.
**Constables **are Public Officers elected or appointed to their position in accordance with the laws of elections. A Constable is a sworn Law Enforcement/Peace Officer that can arrest for felony crimes and breaches of the peace committed in his presence, or by warrant anywhere in the commonwealth. A Constable is also an officer empowered to carry out the business of the statewide district court system by serving warrants of arrest, mental health warrants, transporting prisoners, service of summons, complaints and subpoenas, and enforcing protection from abuse orders as well as orders of eviction and judgement levies. Constables are also charged with maintaining order at the election polls and ensuring that no qualified elector is obstructed from voting. Constables are the only law enforcement officials permitted at the polls on election day.
Coroner applies current scientific methods for evidence analysis and investigations to effectively assist law enforcement, judicial court systems and health and environmental agencies. A variety of modern medicolegal investigative techniques, including an autopsy, when indicated, to establish the medical cause of death and the medicolegal manner of death (natural, accident, homicide, suicide or undetermined).
Investigating Various Deaths
The decedent is brought to our office, by our staff, when an examination is indicated. The decision of whether an autopsy will be performed is made by a board-certified forensic pathologist. Examples of deaths that are brought to our office are:
- Overt criminal violence or suggestion of violence in any form;
- Homicides, by any means;
- Accidents by any means ;
- Suicides by any means;
- Sudden deaths of apparently healthy persons who are not under the care of a PA licensed physician;
- Unidentified or unidentifiable persons or when the next of kin is unknown or may not be available;
- Death in a public facility, i.e. correctional or psychiatric facility; or
- Any suspicious, unusual or questionable death.
The medical investigators conduct the initial phase of the investigation of each death reported to Coroner’s office. Most of the vital information-gathering and record keeping functions required for death investigations are performed by our medical
investigators. Under the supervision of the Coroner, forensic pathologist and/or chief medical investigator, the medical investigators coordinate their findings with autopsy and laboratories throughout the entire investigative process Our investigators are all affiliated with the American Board of Medicolegal Death Investigators.
[/spoiler]
Kinda weak for the Pit, so MPSIMS. Mods move if you feel appropriate.
