Governor Maura Healey Wednesday nominated two western Massachusetts residents, Charles Groce and Jeffrey Trapani, to be Superior Court judges.
This comes after some lawmakers wrote to her last month saying there were too many judicial vacancies in the region.
Groce is the first justice at Westfield District Court and has been on the bench for more than a decade. He also serves as presiding justice at the Court Assisted Supervised Treatment Program in the Springfield District Court. Before becoming a judge Groce was a criminal defense attorney.
Trapani has defended individuals, public officials and employees against personal injury, employment discrimination and civil rights claims for nearly 20 years. He’s currently a partner at the law firm of Pierce Davis & Perritano LLP. He previously was an assistant district attorney in Suffolk County and a law clerk with the state’s juvenile court.
“Both of these nominees are exceptional stewards of justice. Over the course of their respective careers, they’ve been able to bring empathy and consideration to the Court while delivering for the people of Western Massachusetts,” said Healey in a statement announcing the nominations.
Last month, 20 state legislators from the area told Healey in a letter — several judicial vacancies on the Superior Court has led to longer waits for proceedings, often delaying justice. The legislators stated at the time, four of 11 Superior Court judge positions were vacant. They said the log jam was
happening even after recalling judges who had hit the state’s mandatory retirement age of 70, back to active service.
And one attorney said the situation was also leading to defendants being incarcerated longer while awaiting trial.
At the time, a spokesperson for Healey said the governor was “proud” of her judicial nomination record, and added the administration’s chief legal counsel and the director of the judicial nomination committee had been holding sessions in western Mass. The goal, they said, was to encourage
more people from the region to apply for judgeships.
Groce and Trapani will next go before the Governor's Council for
confirmation
