A veteran Westmoreland County prosecutor has announced he will seek election to Common Pleas Court.
Michael A. Pacek, 37, of Hempfield, will take a voluntary leave of absence from District Attorney John Peck's office during this year's campaign. He has worked as an assistant district attorney since 2003.
"I strongly believe that family and community are the essential fabric of society. It is only by providing a safe environment that these institutions can flourish," Pacek said in a prepared statement.
"The role of judge is, at its most basic, is the means by which that goal can be accomplished while at the same time providing an arena of fairness and judicial temperance that can create a confidence in all members of society," Pacek said.
Pacek graduated from Greensburg Central Catholic High School in 1989 and from St. Vincent College in 1992. He obtained a law degree from Duquesne University in 1999. He briefly considered the priesthood and was a seminarian at St. Vincent for two years.
The U.S. Navy veteran is a member of Our Lady of Grace Church, Veteran of Foreign Wars Post 33, American Legion Post 981, the Knights of Columbus and Moose Club in Greensburg, as well as the National Rifle Association. He is the son of Joe and Judy Pacek of Unity Township.
