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St. Clair County is now in need of a new probate judge after the retirement of Judge Wallace Wyatt and the filling of the position is solely at Governor Bob Riley’s digression.

Sources have told the News-Aegis that St. Clair County Commissioner Mike Bowling, attorneys Sarah Manning Brazzalotto and Tony Hamlin, business owners Mike Fricker and Randy Smith and Jefferson State economics professor Steve Valdez are all vying for the position, though the governor’s office would not comment on who might be on tap for serious consideration.

As of press time Tuesday, the governor’s office said that there are “several applicants” for the position and that until interviews are set that it had no further comment on who might be in the running for consideration.

According to the state constitution the only requirement for the job is that the person who will serve is of age to and a resident of St. Clair County. Although the job has not required any educational or law experience in the past, contextually, the probate judge’s job has changed over time to where it has become more critical to the running of one of the county’s most crucial money gathering sources.

One of the more interesting points about the judgeship that Governor Riley will appoint is that it is believed that he is willing to go above the normal requirements of the job, including looking at political patronage, to select someone that is qualified for the judgeship.

Another interesting point is that the governor is most likely to vet someone who is qualified to serve the public and perform the best job and that includes choosing someone who has attended law school or at least has a law background, whether or not they might have passed the bar.

There has been some concern that the position won’t be filled in the next two weeks. But Governor Riley’s office said that he will take the necessary time to choose someone qualified, even if that means operating the probate office without a judge for a few weeks.

“The governor is always concerned about making sure that the proper person is doing the job,” Governor Riley Press Secretary, Tara Hutchison, said. “Each appointment is different and there is not a set time as to how quickly it will be filled. It could be done quickly, or it could take a while.”

The governor’s Appointment Coordinator, Sue Dahrouge, is charged with keeping up with vacancies in the state, including the now-vacant St. Clair probate judge’s office.

The governor, through the Appointment Coordinator, can take suggestions from the public for open positions as well as vet anyone else that might qualify. Whenever the governor makes such a decision, he must also weigh how well the new judge will get along with other county entities and legislative members.

“We always try to get along with everyone in different offices,” St. Clair’s Montgomery representative Dr. Jim McClendon (R, Dist. 50) said of a possible candidate that might be filling the position. “The person who might fill this position would be no different I would suspect.”

But the governor is not conducting a poll on who might receive the most requests or who might look the best on paper and choosing based on those criteria.

One sticking point on the new judge is that although the governor will appoint them, they will have to be elected when the next probate election is put to the people of the county.

The most likely scenario for the new judgeship will involve a three-person committee that will oversee interviewing candidates that make the short list the governor’s office sets up. From those interviews, Governor Riley will then send a letter informing the person had been selected to serve.

It might also be that Governor Riley has already made a decision by today and the interview process might not take place. Though it is believed that the decision will not have been made this week.