NSBNEWS.net video and photo by Sera Frederick.

Our Endorsement for Circuit Judge (Group 10): Eric Neitzke

Eric K. Neitzke has lived life with his motto: "Wisdom is knowledge tempered by experience." While many candidates use political slogans that ring hollow beyond the phrase, he has demonstrated this consistently in 28-plus years of service as an attorney, which is why NSBNEWS.net endorses Neitzke for Circuit Court Judge (Group 10) in Tuesday's primary.

Eric K. Neitzke takes a breather after Sunday's community forum at the Central Baptist Church in Daytona Beach where he spoke. See what he had to say in the video above.

We would not be at all surprised if Neitzke were to win the primary outright Tuesday, but to do that, he would need to get more than 50 percent of the vote. Otherwise the top two in this race go to a runoff in the November elections.

The Group 10, Seventh Judicial Circuit position is in the city of Palatka in Putnam County. The 7th circuit encompasses Volusia, Flagler, Putnam and St. Johns counties.

The 54-year-old Neitzke's resume just by the numbers is impressive:

• Thousands of clients;
• Cases before 135 judges in 24 Florida counties, 11 states and two nations.

Neitzke, a former police officer married with three children, including two young men serving our country in the military, said now is the time for him to move up and serve the public with that attained knowledge tempered by experience.

NSBNEWS.net photo by Henry Frederick.

Eric K. Neitzke, with wife, Kathy, by his side, shown here at a recent candidate forum in Port Orange, is the proud father of two sons, ages 21 and 20, both serving in the military, and a 15-year-old daughter.

"Now that I have reached the 28th year of a practice that has allowed me to raise my children and enjoy the fruits of hard work and study, I have realized that it is time to give back to a profession and a community from which I have benefited," said Neitzke of Ormond Beach, who has his law practice there, and owns a sprawling farm in Putnam County.

"Accordingly, I hope to fill the position of one of the finest of our judges (A.W. Nichols), who is retiring at the end of 2010... I hope to do so with a sense of balance, and application of respect for all who appear before me, either as practitioners, witnesses or litigants."

Neitzke, a former Beach Patrol lifeguard and one-time cop in Ponce Inlet, who received his law degree from the University of Florida, is proud of the fact that he has served thousands of clients, both as private attorney and prosecutor, with extensive representation in civil, family and criminal cases, the latter ranging from traffic court to murder trials.

"I will always remember where my roots are," Neitzke said, referring to his myriad case loads as the foundation that has prepared him for the bench.

"My law practice has enabled me to learn and grow as we have all seen the advent and proliferation of technology and the impact it has had upon the evidence we now consider, Neitzke said. "At the same time I have observed and appreciated the wisdom and forethought that our constitutions, rules of evidence and procedural rules exemplify in order to provide the ground rules within which each case must be considered."

Two other candidates vying with Neitzke for the group 10 seat are Palatka resident Don Holmes, a Florida State University law graduate, with seven years as a prosecutor, followed by 30 years in civil practice; and Scott Dupont, a 2003 law school recipient from Regent University, who was an assistant state attorney for two years before going into private practice.

NSBNEWS.net highly endorses Neitzke, with Holmes,  58, as our second choice. Dupont, 38, a Putnam County native and Daytona Beach resident, who is by far the least experienced of the three, has run a mostly negative campaign that doesn't advance anyone's cause.

NSBNEWS.net recommends Eric K. Neitzke for Circuit Judge (Group 10) in Tuesday's primary.