District judge near retirement
SLIPPERY ROCK — Voters covered by the Slippery Rock District Judge office will elect a new judge this year.
Judge Tim Shaffer will step down at the end of the year.
Rom Ruman, press secretary for the state Department of State, said the office is up for election because Shaffer will turn 70 years old this year, which is the mandatory retirement age for district judges.
Shaffer will serve out the rest of the year. New district judges typically are sworn in on the first Monday of the new year, Ruman said.
Shaffer of Prospect said he always intended to step down at the end of 2015.
“I knew what the rules were when I took over,” Shaffer said.
He was appointed to the post in April 2010 by then-Gov. Ed Rendell to serve out former Slippery Rock District Judge Clifford Woessner’s term. Woessner retired in March 2009.
He was elected to retain the position in 2011. He defeated two challengers in the primary that year but faced no challengers in the general election.
A former state senator and attorney, Shaffer said he enjoyed the position.
“I had a wonderful position,” Shaffer said. “I learned a lot.”
Shaffer’s term officially would expire in 2018. District judges serve six-year terms.
The district court in Slippery Rock covers the townships of Brady, Franklin, Mercer, Muddy Creek, Slippery Rock and Worth, and the boroughs of Harrisville, Portersville, Prospect, Slippery Rock, West Liberty and West Sunbury.
