Sharon lawyer John C. Reed has announced his candidacy for Mercer County Common Pleas judge.

Reed is running as a non-partisan candidate for one of the two judicial seats to be elected by voters in 2003.

Reed, 60, has had a diverse private law practice for more than 30 years. He has served as legal adviser to the Mercer County sheriff, the Sharpsville and West Middlesex school districts, many zoning hearing boards and numerous nonprofit organizations.

Reed has been appointed by the Mercer County courts as legal adviser to the Domestic Relations Division and to serve on the Orphans Court Rules Committee and the county Board of Elections.

A lifelong resident of Mercer County, Reed graduated from Hickory High School, Hermitage, and Thiel College, Greenville. Reed served for three years as a counterintelligence investigator with the Army and earned a law degree from Duquesne University School of Law in 1971. While at Duquesne, Reed was selected to the Law Review and elected president of Phi Alpha Delta legal fraternity.

Reed has tried cases before Common Pleas Court and U.S. Bankruptcy Court and has argued before the appellate courts. He has served as an author and lecturer for the Pennsylvania Bar Institute and a lecturer for the Real Estate Tax Assessors Association. Reed is a member of the American, Pennsylvania and Mercer County Bar Associations, serving as president of the latter this year.

He has been active in Boy Scouts for more than 20 years, serving on its French Creek Council Executive Committee for four years and as a troop committee chairman for 10 years.

He is a member of the executive board of Primary Health Network, serving as president for four years and vice president for two years.

"I have dedicated my career to serving the residents of Mercer County," Reed said. "I believe that my experience, credentials and leadership qualify me to continue serving the county as judge of the Common Pleas Court."

Reed's wife, Virginia, is a private home tutor and former elementary teacher. They live in South Pymatuning Township and are the parents of three sons and a daughter.