Mecklenburg County Judge details challenges within the court system

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – Mecklenburg County District Court Judge Elizabeth Trosch is running for Superior Court Judge. Judge Trosch is running for the seat at a time where Charlotte Mecklenburg Police say more than half of all violent arrests involve people with prior arrests. The statistic raises red flags about a revolving door in the judicial system.

Judge Elizabeth Trosch says judges make split second decisions with limited information.

“When I am able to take the time to get information, good information, reliable information, complete information. I can make pretty good decisions,” Judge Trosch said. “That’s just not the system that we have, and those are not the resources that we have allocated to our district for these purposes.”

Judge Trosch says sometimes judges are forced to set bond without essential information like full criminal history. She says North Carolina Courts are underfunded and lack the resources to assess and address the risks.

“Whether those are risks around housing insecurity, mental illness or substance abuse, so that we could have greater confidence that those risks are being managed in the community pending trial, but that’s just not the reality,” Judge Trosch said.

Judge Trosch presides over Wellness Court for offenders with mental illness. She says the docket stays full and there are dozens of people on the wait list.

“The need has increased significantly and it has demonstrated itself now in our family drug court,” Judge Trosch said. “This issue of people who are court involved, whether it’s child welfare court or different areas of criminal court, having mental health issues that are impacting either their criminal justice involvement or their ability to really engage in their rehabilitation services and really benefit and make progress has increased exponentially.”

Judge Trosch is now running for Superior Court Judge. She previously served as Chief District Court judge addressing a backlog of cases, COVID protocols and launching E-Courts. She says she wants to use her nearly two decades of experience to explore solutions to ongoing problems.

“I’ve proven that I can solve tough problems through collaborative and practical leadership and I want to carry that forward to this next level and I just, I can’t give up,” Judge Trosch said.

Judge Trosch, a democrat previously served as Chief District Court judge for three years. She was removed from her chief position by Republican NC Supreme Court Justice in 2024.

If elected, Judge Elizabeth Trosch would replace her brother in law Superior Court Judge Louis Trosch who is not running for re-election.