Three from area tapped for judge post

By BOB GIBBINS
Press Staff Writer

May 15, 2009 10:06 am

— Editor’s note: Due to a computer crash, this story did not “jump” in the Wednesday paper. Here it is, in its entirety.

Two area judges and a longtime federal prosecutor comprise the short list of the applicant pool from which Gov. Brad Henry will choose the new district judge for Cherokee and Wagoner counties.
The state Judicial Nominating Commission interviewed five of the 12 original applicants Wednesday before narrowing the field to three. Sandy Crosslin, Darrell Shepherd and Sheldon Sperling are the names the JNC sent to Henry’s office. Hen-ry has 60 days from Wednesday to make his decision.
Crosslin has been a special district judge for several years after being ap-pointed by District Judge Bruce Sewell. Prior to that, she worked as an assistant district attorney. Her primary office has been in Cherokee County since the appointment, but she has presided over cases in other counties as well.
Shepherd also has several years on the bench and succeeded Sewell as the associate district judge in Wagoner County in 1995. He, too, has worked as an assistant district attorney in Greg Combs’ administration with Crosslin. He has presided in cases in Cherokee County and other locations.
Sperling has been U.S. attorney for the state’s Eastern District since being sworn in Jan. 15, 2002, but has been with the federal prosecutor’s office since 1985.
He was a state prosecutor in Wagoner, Cherokee, Adair and Sequoyah counties for two years and was in private practice in Tulsa for three years before starting his career as a prosecutor.