SPRINGFIELD — Western Massachusetts Governor’s Councilor Tara J. Jacobs has made a unique public callout for feedback on two judicial nominees from the region.
Attorney Jeffrey Trapani, left, and Judge Charles Groce III have been nominated for Superior Court judgeships. (Courtesy photos)State House News Service
District Court Judge Charles W. Groce III and Northampton attorney Jeffrey Trapani are nominees for the Superior Court and set for hearings on Wednesday before the eight-member Governor’s Council. It will be the last step in a lengthy vetting process before they make it to the posts.
Groce was appointed to District Court by former Gov. Deval L. Patrick in 2012, and Trapani is a veteran attorney with a deep resume, primarily civil actions.
Groce was the founding judge to establish the District Court’s specialty Adult Drug and Mental Health courts, designed to treat those pervasive problems in creative ways and to prevent recidivism.
A large part of Trapani’s practice has been defending municipalities and some police departments in civil rights claims, according to publicly available court records.
Jacobs — in her second term on the council that decides judicial and court administrator appointments, pardons and commutations — said she aimed to balance the importance of public input with the need to fill a glut of judicial vacancies in Western Massachusetts.
“I invite anyone who would like to share their opinions on Judge Groce or attorney Trapani to reach out to me directly via email at tara.j.jacobs@mass.gov,” Jacobs said in a statement.
During an interview on Monday, Jacobs said although the callout wasn’t typical, she intends to deliver on her promise to fill four vacancies in Superior Courts across Western Massachusetts. Those followed a series of retirements and the death of Hampshire Superior Court Judge Francis “Frank” Flannery last year.
“There is nothing particularly typical on the council,” Jacobs said. “But I wanted to still bring voices to the process without holding (it) up.”
Jacobs added that qualified nominees are needed most to prevent a backlog of cases looming over the Superior Courts.
According to a biography on the website of Pierce Davis and Perritano LLP, where Trapani is currently a partner, he is a graduate of Wake Forest University and New England School of Law. His primary areas of practice are civil litigation, including employment law, municipal liability, civil rights and other claims.
Locally, he has played a role as a defense lawyer in a lawsuit filed against the city of Northampton by the mother of a former high school student who argues that her daughter died by suicide after she was persistently bullied at school. The lawsuit, which remains pending in U.S District Court, also alleges Northampton High School officials mishandled the situation.
In addition, Trapani defended the Pittsfield Police Department against a police brutality complaint filed by a former prison inmate who said he was manhandled by officers during an illegal search of his apartment in 2004. That case was dismissed.
Trapani and Groce did not respond to requests for interviews ahead of Wednesday’s hearing at the State House.
Groce is a graduate of the University of Connecticut and received his law degree from Western New England University School of Law.
He has been lauded for his work on the specialty courts and has called it “the most fulfilling work” of his judicial career.
At a Drug Court ceremony for success stories in 2018, Groce told participants to focus on their current paths, as opposed to their pasts.
“If you do the best you can in this moment, then tomorrow will take care of itself, and the past will have been meaningful, rather than meaningless,” Groce said.
Longtime criminal defense lawyer David P. Hoose said he is throwing his support behind Groce as a good pick for the Superior Court bench.
“It will truly be a loss for the District Court. What sets him apart is that he is a true people person. He relates to the litigants before him, their lawyers and court staff in a way that makes everyone feel they have been heard,” Hoose said.
Jacobs said the two nominees are perfectly suited for the needs of the Superior Court as it stands.
The hearings will be livestreamed from the State House.
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