Dist. 23 Judge Candidates

The Pottawatomie County Advocates for Voter Education held a forum Thursday, Oct. 27 at City Hall in Shawnee. Candidates for three races were presented to the public, including the two candidates for District 23 Judge, Traci Soderstrom and Joe Dobry. It was mentioned by both candidates that they are related. Soderstrom’s husband is the father of Dobry’s wife.

Judge candidates are not allowed to hold a debate so each candidate was given five minutes to tell the audience about their qualifications.

Traci Soderstrom Soderstrom has been married to her husband, David for 27 years. They have four children. She said she has been a practicing attorney for 19 years and has practiced in 38 different areas of the law across the state, in 22 different counties.

She said she is licensed in the Oklahoma Supreme Court, the Western District, The Eastern District, The Northern District, federal courts, and the US Supreme Court.

Soderstrom said, “The district judge in Lincoln County, which is the seat that I’m running for, happens to at the present time handle the civil docket, the probate docket as well as the federal. But the district judge also has the ability to reassign cases and handle any type of case that’s filed within the county or within the district.”

She said she has practiced everything from administrative court issues to appeals, zoning, and quiet titles. She has practiced criminal law, juvenile law, domestic law, probate, “and just about everything you could imagine.

Soderstrom also said for 19 years she has run a successful business and practice. She said this is important because the district judge assists with hiring bailiffs, reviewing and approving contracts for the Oklahoma indigent defense, and setting policies in the District Court.

Soderstrom is a Veteran. She said she served six years with the Oklahoma Army National Guard.

She said, “During my time as an attorney I’ve represented more than 125 children that were in DHS custody in Lincoln County alone. Half of those were pro bono because I believe it’s very, very important to protect our children.”

“Now one of the reasons why I’m running for district judge is, I believe that it’s very important to follow the law,” said Soderstrom. “Judges are not here to make law. They’re not here to change law. We are here to follow the law. And if the law is not being followed, then it’s the judge’s responsibility to ensure that the parties that come before them are doing just that.”

She said, “I also believe that it is important that every person that comes before the court is treated with respect, is treated fairly, is treated with dignity, and is treated with compassion. Obviously, the judge’s job is to judge but not be judgmental and disrespectful and mean-spirited about it.”

Joe Dobry Dobry is married with two daughters. He was born in Chandler and said he is the oldest candidate in the race, being over the age of 50.

Dobry said he has been practicing law for nearly 30 years. He spent two years in Shawnee, 1994-1996 and had been in Chandler approximately eight when he met Traci Soderstrom.

Dobry said he has practiced in many different areas of law. “The district judges responsibility is to handle primarily the felony cases. Those are the most important cases that come before a court because they’re the most serious offenses.”

He said he has served as a prosecutor and has prosecuted felony crimes and misdemeanor crimes, everything from murder, to traffic citations.”

“I think there’s a lot to be said for the judicial process,” said Dobry. “It is a deliberately slow process, a necessarily slow process to safeguard and protect the rights of all individuals who come before the court to make sure that their rights are protected, and that both sides are fairly and impartially heard.”

Dobry said he has done major civil litigation, probates, and criminal defense, and has also done divorces, although he does less of those now. He said he is admitted to practice in the Supreme Court of the state of Oklahoma, in the Northern District, the federal court for the Western District, Federal court for the Eastern District of Oklahoma.

He said, “I was also involved in many, many juvenile cases over many, many years, involving deprived children who have been removed from their homes, by the Department of Human Services.”

He said he has also been involved in cases involving delinquent children and “dealt with cases in which individuals are in need of mental health services.”

“I’ve done practically every area of law that is heard by the district judge in Lincoln County,” said Dobry. “In fact, I’m the only candidate who has any prosecution experience at all. And I think it’s important to bear in mind that these are very important cases that require experience and thoughtfulness and judgment.