Circuit Judge Robert A. Irons announces his candidacy for re-election as Judge of the 31st Judicial Circuit, comprising Summers and Monroe Counties.
A lifelong resident of Monroe County, he graduated from Union High School in 1973 and Marshall University in 1977, and obtained his law degree from Washington and Lee University School of Law in 1980. He worked for the Haynes, Ford and Guills law firm in Lewisburg before opening his own practice in Union in 1981, and served eight years as Monroe County Prosecuting Attorney before being elected as circuit court judge in 1992. He is now completing his 24th year serving the citizens of Monroe and Summers Counties as circuit judge.
“I deeply appreciate the trust the people of Monroe and Summers Counties have shown in me,“ Irons says. “It has been an honor to serve as circuit judge and I have done my utmost to be worthy of that trust. I have always tried to be approachable and responsive to all residents of the 31st Circuit. It is gratifying and humbling that so many people have come forward in recent weeks to offer their support in the upcoming election.”
“I’m running for re-election because I care about people and I want to improve my community,” he adds. “This is the seventh busiest circuit in the state, facing huge problems with poverty, drug addiction, truancy, and child abuse and neglect. The case load is very challenging for one judge covering two counties, but I strive to apply the law fairly and resolve cases in a timely manner. I have established community corrections programs, an adult Drug Court, and a school-based probation officer, and have taken a particular interest in trying to help juvenile offenders get on the right track to becoming productive members of their community. Through these efforts, cases move quickly through the system, the county saves large sums of money, children are back in school receiving an education, and children are removed from abusive environments.”
Irons has worked with the State Supreme Court to bring many technological advances to the court system. Monroe County is now leading the state as one of three counties in West Virginia developing and implementing electronic filing of circuit court cases. Courtrooms in both Monroe and Summers Counties now have some of the most advanced technology available, including large-screen projectors and technology carts for presenting evidence during trials, video conferencing capability, and state of the art sound systems.
He is active in community affairs, serving as current secretary and past president of the Bluegrass Ruritan Club (of which his father was a founding member), past zone governor for Ruritan Zone 1, and an active member of the Hinton Rotary Club.
Irons and his wife Beckie reside on the family farm near Pickaway. He is third generation of his family to farm this property, which has been in the Irons family since the late 1800s. He is the son of Frances Patton Irons of Union, and the late George Benton Irons.
