One of Schuylkill County’s powerhouse prosecutors will build on his background as he steps up to the office of district judge.

The Pennsylvania Senate on July 8 unanimously confirmed Andrew J. Serina, 49, of West Penn Township, to the Orwigsburg office previously held by James R. Ferrier, who retired as of May 31, 2021.

Ferrier served for 35 years; Senior District Judge Richard Cashman has been presiding in the interim.

Serina’s confirmation will now go to Gov. Tom Wolf for commission, then Serina will be sworn in by Schuylkill County President Judge Jacqueline L. Russell.

He was nominated for the office by state Sen. David G. Argall, R-29.

District judges serve six-year terms. They don’t run in retention elections, but in contested races may be elected to new terms.

Serina - “AJ” to those who know him - resigned on June 17 from his position as assistant district attorney.

He comes to the district judge office with decades of courtroom experience.

He worked for the Schuylkill County district attorney’s office from 2002 through 2012, then from 2016 through 2022.

Why move on?

“I made the move because I’ve always enjoyed working in the public sector,” Serina said. “As a prosecutor, I took pride in trying to uphold the laws of the commonwealth, laws that were enacted to protect all individuals. I feel that working in the judicial branch is a natural progression. I’m working for the people, but just in a different capacity.”

Serina will draw on his knowledge and experience as he steps into his new role.

“I feel that I have a lot to offer the bench. As an assistant district attorney I spent the vast majority of my career in the courtroom, and I’ve seen how judges have interacted with litigants. I’ve seen what works and what doesn’t. I’ve learned that the most important point to adhere to when upholding the law is to treat people with respect,” he said.

District Attorney Michael A. O’Pake, for whom Serina worked since 2018, is proud of his former assistant, but will miss him.

“AJ is a very intelligent individual. His knowledge of the law is second to none, and he’s always very well-prepared. He’s got a great personality and demeanor, and he treats everyone fairly,” O’Pake said. “He has a good judicial temperament.”

“Those are the traits and qualities that will make him a great judge,” he said.

Among the many cases Serina prosecuted as an assistant district attorney, the beating death of a Mexican immigrant in Shenandoah in 2008 and the attempted murder of a woman in 2018 stand out for O’Pake.

“Those are probably the most memorable cases he prosecuted for me,” O’Pake said.

While Serina’s move to judgeship “is a tremendous loss” for the district attorney’s office, he said, Serina was “part of a great team, but we still have a great number of people very similar to AJ.”