LAMBERTVILLE -- A Bedford High School graduate and practicing attorney in the township has declared his candidacy for Monroe County Probate Court.

Anthony Brescol, 34, said he will vie in November for the seat held by Judge Frank Arnold, who was appointed by then-Gov. Jennifer Granholm in July, 2010.

Judge Arnold replaced Pamela Moskwa, who retired, and under Michigan law must run in the first general election to serve the remainder of the partial term, which ends Jan. 1, 2015.

Mr. Brescol, 34, has formed the Committee to Elect Anthony R. Brescol, which held a fund-raiser at Sidelines Sports Eatery and Pub in Lambertville on Saturday, and is collecting the signatures of registered county voters that must be filed by May 1.

Mr. Brescol and Judge Arnold know and like each other, and said the nonpartisan contest will not change that.

"We've been colleagues for a number of years now, and whatever happens, that's the way it will remain," Judge Arnold said.

Mr. Brescol, a Lambertville resident, is president of the county bar association. He graduated from Bedford in 1995 and received his bachelor's degree from Manchester College in Indiana.

He received his law degree from Michigan State University in 2002 and has practiced in Monroe County since.

He credits his mother, Deb Brescol, with inspiring in him a desire to be a judge. Ms. Brescol is executive director of Bedford RSVP and has worked with senior citizens and children much of her adult life.

"I was brought up to believe that caring for children and seniors was a paramount concern," he said.

Protecting elders from abuse and neglect "is a passion of mine," he added. "Elder abuse involves physical abuse and also financial abuse, and not just by caregivers, but family members too."

The probate court hears juvenile delinquency cases and handles estates, guardianships, abuse, and neglect cases, among other duties.

It also handles some divorces, although most are assigned to the Monroe County Circuit Court's Family Division, Mr. Brescol said.

At Bedford High School, Mr. Brescol wrestled, played football, and was a senior class officer.

He was named the most valuable player in wrestling his senior year, and continued the sport at Manchester, where he was selected for the NCAA Division III Academic All American Wrestling Team.

He spent several years at the Monroe firm of Lennard Graham and Goldsmith, where he retains a connection that is an important part of his life: his girlfriend, Lisa Janos, is an associate attorney there.

He opened his solo practice in Lambertville in 2008, with an office in the Old Schoolhouse Commons.

He and his ex-wife have shared custody of their young son.

More than 70 percent of his clients are in Bedford Township.

He said he has done much criminal defense work, including criminal sexual conduct and home invasion cases. He takes court appointments, but most of his clients are retained.

First Published February 22, 2012, 5:00 a.m.