This November’s ballot includes two candidates running for the Northern Fairfield County District Judge of Probate office. The regional Probate Court is in the Bethel Municipal Center, 1 School Street, Bethel, and is open Monday through Friday from 8:30 am to 4:30 pm.

Incumbent Republican Joe Egan, Jr, a former Ridgefield probate judge, became the first Northern Fairfield County judge after local offices were regionalized in 2010. He is running for his second term, but told The Bee that he will “age out,” and if reelected, will be retiring when he turns 70 about half-way into the four-year term.

Democratic probate candidate Steven Boa DeMoura may be familiar to some Newtown voters because he ran unsuccessfully for the Second Assembly District against Dan Carter in 2012.

Mr DeMoura resides on Codfish Hill Road in Bethel with his wife, Kathryn Kilian DeMoura, who is a second grade teacher in Ridgefield at Branchville Elementary School. Their young son is Maxwell Kilian DeMoura, and their second child is due November 1.

The Democratic probate candidate earned his Juris Doctor from Quinnipiac University School of Law, and attained a BS in business administration from the University of Rhode Island.

He is a self-employed attorney and principal of the Law Office of Steven Boa DeMoura at 4 Stony Hill Road in Bethel, specializing in litigation, real estate, and probate law. He also serves as a court-appointed attorney and conservator,

Mr DeMoura previously worked at the law offices of Pinney Payne, PC, as an associate attorney, and previously was elected to the Bethel City Board of Assessment Appeals. He is former president of the Greater Danbury Bar Association, as well as a board member of The Nathan Lounsbury Foundation, Inc.

In a statement, Mr DeMoura related: “My wife and I are, and have been very much a part of all the communities that this district encompasses. We have lived in this area our whole lives, and have begun to raise our own family in this area.”

The candidate said it would be “an honor and a privilege to serve the 45th district as Probate Judge.”

“I believe that I have the compassion, and ability necessary to serve our communities effectively,” Mr DeMoura added.” I believe that electing [me] to Probate Judge for the Northern Fairfield County District is a choice to secure continuity and preserve a future…with someone who will listen, treat people with the respect they deserve and make decisions that are fair and carefully made.” 

In his campaign materials, incumbent Judge Egan reminds voters that he has served as a probate judge for 24 years, two decades in Ridgefield and four in the regional post.

“Probate Judges touch the lives of our citizens on a daily basis,” he stated. “Most individuals will never have the occasion to appear in a Superior Court courtroom.  On the other hand most [residents], or [their] spouses, children or family members will have a matter in the Probate Court at one time or another.”

During his terms of service to the Probate Court, Judge Egan has been an active participant in state and national judicial organizations.  In Connecticut he serves on the Executive Committee of the Probate Assembly and is the committee’s nominating chair. 

At the national level Judge Egan served on the Executive Committee of the National College of Probate Judges, and in 2007 was installed as only the second president from Connecticut in its 46-year history.

Notwithstanding, Judge Egan said he always stressed the human element of being a probate judge. 

“Obviously, a death in the family creates a very difficult situation, both emotionally and financially.   While my legal and judicial experience is certainly important, it is just as important for a Probate Judge to be compassionate and understanding,” he wrote. “I can assure [voters] that everyone who comes into the court is and will be treated with the dignity and respect they deserve.”

He stressed that unlike any other judges that voters may be familiar with, a probate judge does not wear a robe and does not sit on a bench high above the parties. 

“A Probate Judge sits at a table with the parties and looks them in the eye,” he stated. “The Judge can feel their anxiety and pain and must exert a calming influence on the situation. It is here where the Judge must be understanding and a good listener and be able to guide the person through a very difficult time, both emotionally and sometimes financially.

“Anyone who knows me will attest that I am that type of person and I look forward to your vote on November 4,” Judge Egan concluded.