With an eye on addressing mental health issues on the Peninsula, Clallam County District Court I Judge Dave Neupert is seeking re-election.

Neupert, who was first elected in 2018 to fill a vacancy left by judge Rick Porter, announced his re-election bid on April 3.

District Court I recently received a $231,500 state grant to establish the Mental Health Court.

“The new Mental Health Court will hold participants accountable while matching them with treatment services to reduce recidivism,” Neupert said in a press release.

“[I am] committed to moving District Court forward to meet the emerging needs of our community. Mental Health Court will have a positive impact in peoples’ lives.”

No other candidates had field paper with for the position with the Washington state Public Disclosure Commission as of April 5.

District Court didn’t shut down during the COVID-19 pandemic, he noted.

“We stayed open to do the peoples’ business, which is a tribute to the dedication of our court staff to assist the public,” he said in the release.

“People can now appear by video for many hearings, and that means better access to the court. We plan to provide more access by also providing for electronic filing of legal documents.”

District Court I will also continue to require community service work as an alternative to incarceration to “maintain accountability for offenders while providing a chance for positive involvement with others in need,” Neupert said.

Neupert, a Port Angeles resident who is active on the Therapeutic Courts committee of the statewide District and Municipal Judges Association Court, was news director at radio station KONP in Port Angeles after he graduated with a journalism degree from The Evergreen State College in Olympia, and earned a law degree from the University of Puget Sound.

He has practiced criminal and civil law in Clallam County since 1991, including four years as head of the public defender agency covering Clallam County.

He was a partner at the Platt Irwin Taylor law firm, followed by his work as in-house general counsel to Peninsula Housing Authority.

He has also volunteered with numerous local nonprofit organizations, he noted in the press release, including Peninsula Behavioral Health, Habitat for Humanity of Clallam County, United Way of Clallam County, Olympic Peninsula Humane Society and Peninsula College Foundation.

The geographic area covered by District Court 1 stretches west from Blyn to west of Joyce.