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To run for judge
Candidates to replace Thurston County Superior Court Judge Richard A. Strophy must have a license to practice law in Washington, and they can file their candidacy with the county during the first week of June.
If a candidate wins more than 50 percent of the vote in the August primary, he or she wins the judgeship. But if no one gets more than 50 percent of the vote, the top two vote-getters then square off in the November general election.
The Olympian
Judge retiring after 25 years
By Jeremy Pawloski | The Olympian
Strophy said drug court "probably has been, in the big picture of things, the most significant and the most rewarding" accomplishment in his tenure as judge. Since drug court started in 1998, there have been 277 graduates, and "less than 10 percent of them have been re-arrested for criminal offenses," he said.
Thurston County Superior Court Judge Gary Tabor will serve as presiding drug court judge after Strophy retires, Strophy said.
Strophy said that as a prosecutor, one case that stands out was his conviction of a man who shot and killed two bank tellers during a robbery in the early 1980s. He said that on the bench, some of his significant cases included a civil case in which he ruled it was unconstitutional for a local Eagles Club to ban women from its meetings. Strophy fondly remembered that his ruling was upheld by the state Supreme Court, and one of its former judges, C.Z. Smith, quoted him in his opinion.
Attorneys who work in both prosecution and criminal defense said Tuesday that they were sad to hear Strophy was leaving the bench. Defense attorney Sax Rodgers said Strophy's leadership with drug court will have a lasting effect on countless defendants.
"I think Judge Strophy has been an excellent judge — very fair, very honest, on the criminal as well as the civil side," Rodgers said. "We'll miss him — and I've lost and won in his courtroom."
Thurston County Chief Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Jon Tunheim called Strophy "one of the best judges I've ever been in front of on the rules of evidence.
Added Thurston County Superior Court Judge Chris Wickham, "I think we'll all miss his leadership."
Thurston County Superior Court judges hear a larger number of cases involving statewide issues than judges in other counties because it's the location of the capital. Because all government agencies have a home base in Olympia, any legal proceeding involving a state government entity, even in other parts of the state, may be heard in Thurston County.
Jeremy Pawloski covers public safety for The Olympian. He can be reached at 360-754-5465 or jpawloski@theolympian.com.
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