Five candidates for county clerk position

Five candidates hoping to land the 18-month appointment of county clerk and register of deeds were interviewed Wednesday.
St. Joseph County Circuit Court Judge Paul Stutesman, who will ultimately select the appointed successor to Pattie Bender, said second interviews will likely be staged within the next two weeks.
Stutesman was joined by a panel of four additional people – Bender, human resources director Teresa Doehring, probate/circuit court administrator Kathy Griffin and probate court judge David Tomlinson – for the first-interview process. He said finding a day and time when the quintet can stage second interviews is the immediate priority.
Stutesman did not indicate how many candidates will return, but it will not be all five, he said. Names of the candidates will likely be made public once the field is set, he added.
Bender, 64, is retiring June 30, six months into her 24-month term. She has been clerk since 1991 and has worked for the county since 1970.
The appointed successor will complete Bender’s current term, which expires at the end of 2016.