New judge Sutton promises to balance duty with public care
Pitt County’s newest judge said that she is grateful to voters for entrusting her with the responsibility of the bench and that her intention going forward is to balance legal duty with public care. “The law functions to serve the people. It seems to me in our current political climate, perhaps there has been a neglect of serving people,” said Democrat Watisi Sutton, who unseated two-term Republican judge Daniel Hines Entzminger in the Nov. 3 midterm election 34,518 to 28,305 votes. The total includes provisional and absentee ballots counted Tuesday, but not change from Friday’s canvass. She will serve a four-year term as one of six judges on the District Court bench in Pitt County, which makes up the state 3rd Judicial District. She brings 26 years of legal experience to the post, with her experiences spanning prosecution, public defense, civil aid and municipal government, she said. Sutton’s career includes work as an assistant district attorney in the 2nd Judicial District, managing attorney for Legal Aid’s New Bern office, a town attorney for Williamston and 16 years in a private practice in her hometown of Washington. Within her private practice, Sutton handled criminal defense, family law, civil matters, bankruptcy and
