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| Wednesday, Jan 29, 2003 |
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Posted on January 29, 2003 Kitchens chosen as clerk of court
tom.langhorne@shj.com Gov. Mark Sanford on Tuesday named Magistrate Marc Kitchens Spartanburg County's next clerk of court. Kitchens, 35, will fill the unexpired term of former Clerk of Court Mark Hammond, who was elected South Carolina's secretary of state in November. Hammond took office Jan. 15. With the support of lifelong friend state Sen. John Hawkins, Kitchens was appointed to a part-time magistrate position in January 2001. At that time, he was a licensed funeral director and embalmer at J.F. Floyd Mortuary who had worked in several local Republican political campaigns. Several months later, Kitchens was appointed to a new, full-time magistrate position created by virtue of 2000 Census results. Lacking a law degree, he underwent legal education as mandated by state law. Until his appointment Tuesday, he was head of Spartanburg County Magistrate Court's Traffic Division. Kitchens said he will begin work this morning. "I'm humbled and honored by this appointment, and I want to get right to work to justify the faith that has been placed in me," he said. "My service as a magistrate has required me to stay out of politics, and I greatly respect the principal that judges and politics do not mix. But I can now openly say that I am, and always have been, a proud Republican. However, the operation of the Clerk of Court's Office will remain free of partisan politics, and all the citizens of Spartanburg County will receive full and excellent service from my office." Kitchens said he will run for clerk of court in 2004, when the term to which Hammond was elected in 2000 expires. The clerk of court's functions include drawing jurors for criminal and civil trials, collecting and disbursing court-ordered child-support payments, filing Orders of Protection and transmitting them to law enforcement agencies, and maintaining divorce records, pending arrest warrants and lawsuits. The executive order in which Sanford appointed Kitchens bears one other signature: Hammond's. He signed it in his capacity as secretary of state. Tom Langhorne can be reached at 582-4511, Ext. 7221, or tom.langhorne@shj.com. Tom Langhorne can be reached at 582-4511, Ext. 7221, or tom.langhorne@shj.com. |
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