Governor appoints Magistrate Judge Kristin Hutchinson to fill district court vacancy in the 13th Judicial District
Today Governor Laura Kelly appointed Magistrate Judge Kristin Hutchinson, to fill the term of retiring District Judge Mike Ward.
“Judge Hutchinson has extensive experience with a wide variety of legal issues,” Kelly said. “I know she will serve the citizens of Butler County and the entire 13th Judicial District well.”
Hutchinson has served as a District Magistrate Judge in Elk County for the past eleven years, where she handles probate, small claims, juvenile offender and child-in-need-of-care cases. Hutchinson has prior experience as Chautauqua County Attorney pro tem, in addition to over a decade of experience with the City of Emporia, KS which included five years as Municipal Judge. She graduated from Southwestern College in 1979 and earned her juris doctor from the University of Kansas School of Law in 1983.
District judges in Butler County are elected and serve four-year terms. When a judge retires in the middle of a term, the governor appoints a new judge to finish out the term. The position to which Hutchinson is being appointed will be on the ballot in 2020. The 13th Judicial District includes the counties of Butler, Elk, and Greenwood.