LUMBERTON — Three people filed this week as candidates for the three District Court judge positions in Robeson County, and a head-to-head contest already has taken shape.
Robeson County Assistant District Attorney Angelica Chavis McIntyre filed Monday to run for the District Court judgeship held by Judge Dale Deese. Deese filed Thursday for re-election to the bench seat he has held since April 2016 when he was appointed by Gov. Pat McCrory in the wake of Judge John Carter’s retirement.
Robeson County Department of Social Services attorney Brooke Locklear Clark filed Monday as a candidate for the bench position held by Judge J. Stanley Carmical, who recently was nominated by Gov. Roy Cooper to serve as a special Superior Court judge.
The third District Court seat up for election on Nov. 6 is held by Judge Herbert Richardson, who has announced his retirement. No candidates had filed for that bench position as of Friday afternoon.
Clark is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she received a bachelor of arts degree in 2001 and a law degree in 2004, according to information given to The Robesonian. She has been in private practice in Robeson County for more than 13 years, focusing in the areas of criminal, traffic, domestic, civil and juvenile law.
Clark represents Robeson County DSS in child welfare and adult protective services matters. She is on the Robeson County Bar’s Law Day Committee, regularly speaks to students in schools throughout Robeson County about the legal profession and serves as a member of the Bar Candidate Review Committee.
Clark lives in Pembroke with her husband, Adam, and their two children, Camryn and Dean. She is the daughter of retired Judge Gary Locklear and his wife Molly. She attends Berea Baptist Church and is a Bible Drill leader. She is a member of the Lumberton Junior Service League, the Friends of the Robeson County Public Library and serves on the Superintendent’s Advisory Committee. She is a member of the Democratic Women of Robeson County and serves both on the State Party Executive Committee and the County Party Executive Committee.
Deese is an incumbent District Court Judge for Judicial District 16B in Robeson County.
“I have served as your District Court judge for the past two years and have approximately 30 years of legal experience serving as the director/senior managing attorney of the local legal aid program for Robeson, Hoke, and Scotland counties,” Deese said in a statement. “I have received many awards over the course of my legal career, including the North Carolina Pro Bono Attorney of the Year and being named the 73rd recipient of the North Carolina Bar Association’s Centennial Award.”
Deese also served as an instructor for Robeson Community College and an adjunct professor at The University of North Carolina at Pembroke, according to information given to The Robesonian. He is a co-founder of the Julian T. Pierce Memorial Scholarship Initiative, which has raised more than $140,000 in scholarship assistance to UNCP, Robeson Community College, and the North Carolina Central University School of Law.
He has been married to Mindy Miller Deese for almost 30 years. They have a son, Samuel, a 2018 graduate of North Carolina State University. Judge Deese has been a member of Gideons International for more than 22 years and currently serves as president of the Robeson West Gideons Camp.
McIntyre has extensive courtroom experience in both District and Superior Courts across North Carolina and has handled thousands of cases ranging from serious offenses such as violent sexual assaults and murders to more basic criminal violations such as traffic citations, according to information provided to The Robesonian. McIntyre is actively involved throughout Robeson County in a variety of ways, such as serving as a judge for the Robeson County Teen Court Program, being a frequent guest speaker at school career days and church youth groups throughout the county, and serving as a board member of the United Way of Robeson County, Robeson County Arts Council, and the UNCP Alumni Association.
“We hope that all of the people of Robeson County can become involved in the judicial election process,” McIntyre said in a statement. “I have the passion to lead, the experience to serve, and we invite everyone to follow our campaign on Facebook at Angelica Chavis McIntyre for Judge as we continue to advocate for equal justice for a brighter future for Robeson County.”
McIntyre is a product of the Public Schools of Robeson County, and a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Pembroke. She received her law degree from Campbell University, where she also served as a guest contributor to the Campbell Law Observer. She is married to Stephen McIntyre, an attorney in Lumberton.
The filing period for elected judicial positions began Monday and ends Friday. Candidates must file in Raleigh after being verified as eligible by a county board of elections. The elected term for each District Court judgeship in Robeson County is four years.
