Elizabeth Thornton Trosch
Party:
Democrat
Incumbent:
No
Age:
Approximately 50
Previous experience in elected office:
District Court Judge (2009-present)
Occupation:
District court judge
Description:
Trosch was most recently reelected to District Court in 2024 and is currently running for Superior Court. She says she has helped make Mecklenburg County courts "a national model in procedural fairness and evidence backed court practices." She previously served as Chief District Court judge, a role tasked with keeping the court dockets organized and on time. She was commended by other local judges for her "collaborative style" during Covid.
Review of Candidate Rulings (Source: Wake Forest University School of Law Pro Bono Project)
Trosch has served as a Mecklenburg County District Court judge since 2005, with much of her work focused on family law, juvenile matters, and cases involving parental rights. Publicly available appellate decisions have affirmed several of her rulings, including decisions involving juvenile and family law proceedings. Her judicial experience includes work within North Carolina's "one judge, one family" model, which assigns related family matters to judges with specialized experience. A review of appellate decisions identified three cases in which Judge Trosch's orders were at least partially reversed on appeal.
Other personal:
Trosch is married and the mother of three boys. She served as an assistant public defender before becoming a judge. She has a B.A. from Hollins College and a JD from Wake Forest University.
The Election Hub Questionnaire
Please provide demographic information about yourself to help voters (age, education, current occupation, where you live).
5-Term District Court Judge; Mother of 3 East Meck grads; Married 24 years and living in Southeast Charlotte; graduate of Wake Forest Law School where I was recognized by the NC State Bar for public service while a student.
Why are you running for this role and why should voters pick you? Please share your previous experience in elected office that would be relevant to voters.
As a young girl, I saw that some people could just never get ahead no matter how hard they worked. That was true for my mom. As a public defender, I saw that who is on the bench makes the difference between someone who wants to make a problem go away and someone who will take the time to solve the problem. That’s when I knew I wanted the gavel so that I could guarantee that our courts actually work for the people.
I have spent nearly two decades on the district court bench rebuilding unjust systems that punish poverty and mental illness while making our communities safer and restoring dignity to the court process. I know that the court can be a force for public good and that is what I fight for every day.
Few women hold a seat on the Superior Court Bench and I'm changing that. My experiences on and off the bench make me your trusted decision-maker on the court and proven champion for justice.
Tell us 1-2 professional accomplishments you have achieved in your work experience (not limited to public service) that give voters a sense of your leadership style or skills.
As a nationally recognized expert on trauma-informed courts, I have worked with national, state and local leaders to implement trauma-informed court practices. I was appointed to serve as Chief District Court Judge in March 2020 and shepherded the district through transformational change through collaborative and data-driven case management strategies.
Artificial intelligence (AI) is an area of concern for many voters (e.g. government-run chatbots; AI-generated videos, text and images; data centers; license-plate readers; AI to hire and evaluate employees or teach students). How should elected officials in your role or others regulate AI, if you believe they should? How should elected officials in your role use AI?
As a superior court judge, I may have a case come before me in which questions concerning regulation of artificial intelligence is an issue. I will be guided by the state and federal constitutions in protecting the people of North Carolina and any law that applies to regulation of artificial intelligence.
Judges should be cautious in relying on AI to conduct legal research, prepare orders or other legal analysis as AI agents can make mistakes and are no substitute for the analysis of legally trained lawyers.
What endorsements from any notable NC organizations or people have you received?
LGBTQ+ Democrats of NC
How long have you lived in the region/district where you are running for office?
I have lived in North Carolina since 1998.
Tell us something unexpected about yourself that voters may be interested to know.
As the oldest of four seeing my mom struggle to make ends meet, I got my first job as a paper carrier at age 11.
The questions below are in partnership with The Path to Permanency.
What is the extent of your professional and/or personal experience handling child welfare cases?
I am a state certified juvenile judge and have worked on juvenile cases since 2009. As the chair of Charlotte Model Court from 2010-2020 and Lead Juvenile Court Judge from 2018-2020, I led a collaboration of juvenile court stakeholders implementing systemic changes to improve outcomes for children in abuse, neglect and dependency cases during those years. I currently preside over juvenile court matters as a district court judge.
ASFA (Adoption and Safe Families Act) sets timelines requiring that a case move to Terminate Parental Rights if a child has been in care 15 out of the last 22 months. When a parent has not yet completed services or demonstrated sustained change as that timeline approaches, what is the appropriate judicial response, and how do you weigh the child's need for timely stability against the parent's need for more time?
The ASFA time standards set benchmarks for every stage of a child welfare case and the federal time standards have, in large part, been adopted by the state. North Carolina District Court Judges are required to apply the law as set forth in G.S. 7B-906.1 which states the DSS director shall file the termination of parental rights action when a child has been in custody 12 of the last 22 months unless the court makes any of the following findings:
(1) The primary permanent plan for the juvenile is guardianship or custody with a
relative or some other suitable person.
(2) The court makes specific findings as to why the filing of a petition for
termination of parental rights is not in the best interests of the child.
(3) The department of social services has not provided the juvenile's family with
services the department deems necessary when reasonable efforts are still
required to enable the juvenile's return to a safe home.
The appropriate judicial response is to apply the factors and follow the procedures outlined by North Carolina law.
What specific actions will you take on the bench to ensure cases move toward timely permanency?
I worked tirelessly in previous leadership roles to establish the data sharing agreements and infrastructure to improve time standards outcomes in Mecklenburg County with success prior to the pandemic. Once elected to Superior Court, I will not have a role in child welfare cases.