10/24/2023
Speech from QV Candidate Forum:
I shouldn’t be here.
Standing before my community and asking for your vote to be your District Judge. The significance is not lost on me.
To understand why I say that “I shouldn’t be here”, you need to know that I was born to a 17-year-old high school dropout and a father who abandoned us in a housing project before my 1st birthday.
In terms of starting points, let’s just say that I got the short end of the stick.
Despite the difficulties, growing up in that type of environment teaches you some things sooner than normal.
It teaches hard work.
I don’t remember a day that my mother and step-father missed a day of work. Time off was not a luxury we could afford.
It provides a prospective that good people sometimes deal with real hardship and struggle.
It taught me that people who find themselves off the right path, sometimes simply need someone to believe in them even when they don’t believe in themselves.
My home was filled with love and a dedication to parental sacrifice to ensure that I exceeded their path in life.
My mother had a saying when I was young that “You can do anything through hard work and caring for people”. I’m sure she was trying to convince herself as much as she was trying to instruct me.
Nonetheless, it stuck with me and I have lived my life with those words always in mind.
I tell you this story for a couple of reasons:
My wife Brandi, and I chose this community to raise our two daughters, Evie who is a Freshman in this building, and Sophie who is at that Middle School.
We chose Quaker Valley for 2 reasons:
First, the amazing school district and the sterling reputation of the administrators and teachers in the district.
2nd, we knew that this would be a safe place to raise our girls.
Every morning when I awake in our home in Bell Acres, I know that I am blessed, because my family does not have to live with the dangers I lived with in the community where I was raised.
We moved here because it was safe and I will do everything within my authority as District Judge to keep it safe for my family and yours alike.
I tell you of my starting point to highlight what hard work means to me.
I was the first in my family to graduate high school.
I dedicated my career to the Courtroom and the Constitution.
It has provided me with the practical experience of:
• A 24 year career as a trial lawyer without a single ethical violation.
• Where I have tried more than 100 trials to verdict.
• Including all divisions of the county court system.
• Conducted 4000 proceedings at the Magisterial Level
• 8 years of adjunct teaching between undergraduate and Pitt Law
• I am an expert in the rules of procedure, and evidence which apply in District Court.
Taxpayers:
The most efficient of Magisterial offices is an expensive endeavor. That cost multiplies when incorrect legal decisions are made at the District Court Level.
The District Court hears matters beyond preliminary criminal matters;
It handles:
• Landlord Tenant Disputes
• Civil Liability Disputes
• Property Damage Disputes
And much more.
The understanding of the law, for all that a District Judge is required to hear and rule upon, is significant and for some, like me, requires a career-long dedication.
All matters at the Magistrate are important to our community and the neighbors involved. Getting it right the first time is not only cost effective but essential to continued confidence of the judiciary.
What does caring about people mean to me?
It’s treating all people with dignity and respect who come before the court.
It’s the creation of a free legal clinic, in conjunction with the Carnegie Libraries, to provide access to those in need.
Multiple expungement clinics
Creating hundreds of treatment plans for young people dealing with substance abuse, to break the cycle of recidivism.
Its attending NA meetings with someone who wouldn’t have gone otherwise.
Its developing relationships with those we serve and connecting them with needed resources, Finding accountability through fostering change in behavior. It’s seeing the potential and believing in someone even when they may not believe in themselves.
Its understanding failure, attending more funerals than I care to remember for kids that couldn’t find the path.
It’s knowing that despite your best efforts, you can’t help everyone and that individual accountability and effort must be part of the solution.
That is my experience.
If done right, a magistrate can have a profound and positive impact on the community.
If I do it right, it will be an example in leadership, that regardless of where you start or where you’re currently positioned in life, you can accomplish anything through hard work and caring for people.
I have been preparing for this opportunity my entire career. District Judge is the one position in our community where I know can make the greatest positive impact.
My name is Giuseppe Rosselli and I humbly ask for you vote to be your next District Judge.
