19th District Court: Sam Salamey

For Sam Salamey, becoming a judge is a lifelong dream–one he hopes to accomplish by being elected to Dearborn's .

Salamey is one of three candidates for the open seat on the court. The primary election will occur on Aug. 7–which will narrow the pool to two candidates–followed by the general election on Nov. 6.

Judges serve six-year terms with elections occurring every two years.

Salamey said his decision to run comes from a deep sense of civic duty for the city of Dearborn.

“I always aspired to become a judge. I have a passion for public service,” he said. “Even though (being a) judge is a compensated position, I still believe it comes within the fundamental core of public service.”

Salamey said the 19th District Court is in need of change.

“I definitely believe that ... our court lacks effective leadership and sound decision making,” he said. “There is a lack of uniformity in the court which has … demoralized the staff.”

This disfunction within the court, he added, has led to a poor reputation of the court statewide.

Salamey said that if elected, he will strive to ensure that drug court, traffic school and the juvenile court all remain part of the 19th District Court.

“To the extent permitted by law," he said, "I will go on record stating that I will not hesitate to support these programs by contributing 5 percent of my salary to keep these programs in the Dearborn court."

Salamey said he is quietly confident that by running a transparent and informative campaign he will be able to win over voters.

“As I've stated all along, I'm entering this race believing that an informed voter is going to be my best friend,” he said. “I will humbly put my experience, credentials and record of public service before the voters.”

A Dearborn resident since emigrating from Lebanon at the age of 14, Salamey has been the prosecuting attorney for Romulus and Garden city. He is currently the senior attorney at Salamey & Farhat, PLLC and chairs the City of Dearborn Board of Ethics.

His major endorsements include Dearborn Mayor Jack O'Reilly and Dearborn Heights Mayor Dan Paletko.

Learn more at http://samsalamey.com.