FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE:
May 2, 2024
Claire Lancaster
claire.lancaster@state.mn.us
651-219-2975
Commission on Judicial Selection Recommends Third Judicial District Candidates to Governor Walz
[ST.
PAUL, MN] – The Commission on Judicial Selection announced today that
it is recommending five candidates for consideration to fill two
vacancies in Minnesota’s Third Judicial District. The vacancies will
occur upon the retirement of the Honorable Joseph F. Chase and the
Honorable Mary C. Leahy. These seats will be chambered in Rochester in
Olmsted County and Winona in Winona County.
Rebecca Church:
Rebecca Church is the managing attorney of the Third Judicial District
Public Defender’s Office in Winona, where she supervises attorneys and
support staff serving indigent clients in Houston, Wabasha, and Winona
counties. She was previously an assistant county attorney in the Winona
and Mahnomen county attorney’s offices. Church’s community involvement
includes serving as the chair of the Juvenile Justice Committee of the
Winona County Criminal Justice Coordinating Council and the vice
president of the Winona County Bar Association. She also serves as a
member of the Criminal Justice Coordinating Councils and Children’s
Justice Initiatives for Houston, Wabasha, and Winona counties.
Erin Lindhart Felten:
Erin Lindhart Felten is a referee in the Third Judicial District and is
chambered in Olmsted County. She was previously an attorney at
Hoversten, Johnson, Beckmann & Hovey LLP. Lindhart Felten’s
community involvement includes serving as a member of the MSBA Family
Law Section, Olmsted County Bar Association, Mower County Historical
Society, Mower County Agricultural Society, Mower County Humane Society,
and Friends of the Jay C. Hormel Nature Center. She also volunteers
with the booster program of the Austin Packer basketball and football
teams.
Dwight Luhmann:
Dwight Luhmann is a solo practitioner and the Preston city attorney,
where he practices in the areas of criminal law, family law, estate
planning, real estate, probate, and civil litigation. He also serves as
the prosecuting attorney for the cities of Rushford and Wykoff. Luhmann
previously worked as an attorney for David A. Joerg, P.A. in Preston.
His community involvement includes serving as the chair of the Preston
Economic Development Authority, the president of the Fillmore County Law
Library Board, and the parent attorney representative for the Fillmore
County Children’s Justice Initiative. Luhmann is a past board member and
president of the Preston Area Community Foundation.
Tran Nguyen:
Tran Nguyen is the managing attorney of the Third Judicial District
Public Defender’s Office in Rochester. She was previously the deputy
city attorney of the Criminal Division in the Rochester City Attorney’s
Office and an assistant public defender in the Third Judicial District.
Nguyen’s community involvement includes serving as an adjunct professor
for Mitchell Hamline School of Law, working with the Just Deeds Project,
and partnering with local Rochester area high school group Youth in
Law. She is a former president of the Olmsted County Bar Association and
a board member of the Rochester Police Athletic Activities League.
Michael Walters:
Michael Walters is a managing attorney in the Olmsted County Attorney’s
Office, where he leads a team of lawyers in child protection, juvenile
delinquency, and adult mental health cases. He was previously an assistant
public defender in the Third Judicial District. Walters’s community
involvement includes serving as the president of the Olmsted County Bar
Association and a member of the City of Rochester Planning Commission.
For more information about the judicial selection process, please visit the Governor’s Judicial Appointments webpage.
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