Hello, my name is Derek Anthony Kirsopp. I have lived in North Whitehall, PA, since 2012, with my wife Kim, and daughter Abby. My wife is from Louisiana, and we lived down south for a few years, during the financial crisis. When we moved up north again, we spent a couple of years in New Jersey, before my wife’s company relocated her here in the beautiful Lehigh Valley. We’ve been here ever since!
Why I want to be a MDJ:
I believe a court room is a place where rule of law and evidence, meets ethics, and judicial integrity. I believe as a MDJ, I will be grounded by my compassion, humanity, and common sense. Even lower courts are no place for partisan politics. I have served as an honest judge of elections for the past few years, and I have witnessed first hand, what happens when allegations are not supported by evidence, and when disinformation takes root in the court of public opinion. It spreads like wildfire! I believe every person in our community deserves to walk into a court room, knowing their constitutional rights will be protected. As a moderate leaning candidate, I would like to do even more for my community, and serve as a magisterial district judge. I will be fair, ethical, and follow the law, while protecting the rights of the good citizens of my community, in an impartial, and non-politically motivated manner.
Parkland Proud:
My daughter went to Parkland High School, and was on the swim team. I have spent many hours volunteering as an announcer or timer at swim meets, and I even sang the national anthem a few times!
Small Business Owner:
I am a small business owner, working in feature film and media production, as an assistant director, editor, composer, film crew, and actor. I often wear a dozen other hats, and have to keep a cool head under extremely stressful situations, with long hours.
Personal Qualifications:
In college, I studied Political Science, including: local, state, and federal government, and a little bit of constitutional law. I also wrote and hosted a political history podcast, where I compared current events with the law, from the time our founders wrote the constitution. I often talked about how the political division throughout our nation began with Thomas Jefferson, and his Jeffersonian Republicans. Although the republican party we know today, didn't become official until the early 1830's, Jefferson's ideology of pitting farmers against industry, set the stage for the polarized agendas and political division that has dominated US politics for over 200 years.
MDJ’s aren’t lifetime appointments!
Don’t let the propaganda fool you!
-MDJ’s are elected every six years. There are no entitlements for incumbents.
-Every single one of the 250+ non-lawyer MDJ’s in PA, had to go through the same, intense training in Harrisburg, to become certified as an MDJ, including my opponent.
-Even the MDJ’s who are lawyers, have to do “on the job” training! Nobody, not even USSC justices, just “know” how to be a judge, until they become one! A judge never stops learning. Anyone who thinks otherwise, should think about retiring!
As a private citizen:
-I am a strong advocate for protecting citizen's rights.
-I am not afraid to stand up for myself and others.
-I support our local police departments.
-I support ethical conduct, probable cause, and due process.
-I support honest, ethical, and truthful politicians.
