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Gold Hill justice of the peace incumbent faces a challenger By SANNE SPECHT for the Mail Tribune GOLD HILL - In the race for justice of the peace, City Council member and former Mayor Gus Wolf will challenge incumbent Robert King, who has held the position for nearly a quarter of a century. Ballots for the primary election will be mailed May 3 and must be returned by 8 p.m. May 21. A justice of the peace is a citizen judge who decides "non-jailable" offenses, says King. Most cases involve traffic violations issued by city and state police, the county sheriff and marine patrol. King, the city's judge for 24 years, says he works in Gold Hill four days a week and spends the fifth day in White City. He also works as municipal judge for Butte Falls. King says his lengthy tenure in the position has taught him much about Jackson County and people in general. "I've done this job for a long time. I think people have been pretty happy with me. I give out bad news sometimes, but I don't make people feel like dirt," King says. King says when he started hearing cases, the position didn't pay very well. He struggled financially to make ends meet and says it connected him with the people he dealt with in his court. "It started at $5,000 a year. I'd judge people in the morning and then go join them in the food-stamp line in the afternoon," he says. The position currently pays $34,000 annually. King says this will be his last election for this position and wants to go out a winner. "I think this will be my last go-around. I'm hoping to emerge the winner this term," he says. "Then I'll pack it in and go fish." Challenger Wolf is serving his second term on the City Council. Between terms, he served as Gold Hill's mayor for 11/2 years and also worked on the school bond committee and the planning commission. Wolf's council term ends in December - just in time, he hopes, to be sworn in as Gold Hill's new justice of the peace. Wolf says he can bring a fresh perspective to the position. "It's been 24 long years since our county has had another point of view," says Wolf. "I would work hard to honor the people's trust, providing justice and respect for all using common sense, human understanding and a keen social awareness of our communities and their laws." Wolf says he has honed his leadership abilities during 20 years of governmental and community service. When it comes to legal matters, Wolf says the burden is on the state. "I support the belief that the state has the burden of proof to show that a person is guilty beyond a preponderance of the evidence or beyond a reasonable doubt," Wolf says. "My decisions would be based on the totality of the circumstances in each case." In addition to his civic positions, Wolf has owned and operated an advertising agency for the past 20 years. Sanne Specht is a free-lance writer living in Rogue River. Reach her at [email protected] . Mail Tribune Home | Ottaway Newspapers, Inc. | Dow Jones & Co., Inc. | Privacy | Contact Us Copyright � 2001 Mail Tribune, Inc.