Two of a Justice of the Peace's biggest jobs are eviction cases and truancy, when a child keeps missing school. Paige Payne-Neal, a Republican, is running for the Precinct 7 judge seat.
Her campaign says she grew up in an abusive home, worked two jobs as a single mother while earning a business degree and an MBA, and has 20 years in family law and real estate as chief operating officer of the Welch Law Firm. She says she favors prevention over punishment for truancy.
Judges aren't allowed to take sides on these values — it's against judicial ethics rules. The best clue to how a judge thinks is the party they run with.