With the District Court 1 Judge chair soon up for grabs, Cathy Marshall, section chief of the Port Angeles Attorney General Regional Office, feels it is “time for a change and a new perspective.”
Having moved to Sequim nearly five years ago from Birch Bay, Marshall maintained her position as a Washington State Assistant Attorney General and continued her work with the Attorney General Regional Services in Port Angeles.
For the past three years Marshall has acted as the section chief of the Port Angeles Regional Office while upholding her own caseload that includes the Department of Labor and Industries, the Department of Social and Health Services, the Department of Early Learning, Peninsula College, the Department of Licensing and the Employment Security Department.
“Most of my career has been spent doing public service law and the last four and a half years that I’ve been here I’ve heard some things that have been going on in District Court that were a little disturbing to me,” Marshall said.
Thus, Marshall decided to be proactive and with the aspiration to help more people, she opted to run in the upcoming election to become the judge for District Court 1.
Although Marshall’s education did not begin in law, but in journalism, she felt a law degree would strengthen her stills as a journalist and soon discovered that she “really enjoyed being in court,” Marshall said.
Following her move from her hometown of Prosser to study mass communications at the University of Utah, Marshall continued with her education and graduated from J. Reuben Clark Law School at Brigham Young University in 1993.
Marshall was editor for two newspapers before truly delving into her legal career through private practice, followed by six years as a public defender in Yakima and has since devoted the past nine and a half years of her career with the with the Attorney General Regional Services.
“I have such a large concept and philosophy that it is hard to put into words sometimes because there’s so much involved, but my idea of District Court judge is someone who applies the law fairly to everyone who comes into the courtroom, someone who is willing to listen and to make unbiased decisions.”
Because District Court serves everything from small traffic infractions, criminal misdemeanors to civil cases, small claims cases and so on, the court handles a large case volume each year and the judge interacts with thousands of individuals. The high volume of interaction between judge and community is one of the reasons Marshall is pursuing position as District Court 1 Judge.
“District Court is often one of the places where people first encounter the legal system and it should be a place where people learn respect for the system,” Marshall said. “As judge you have the ability to make a positive impact on many lives and I feel I could both do this and provide some new perspective.”
The large caseload of District Court is both a platform for positive change, but also creates one of the biggest challenges for a District Court judge, Marshall said. To allow everyone “their day in court” in a fast-paced court is what Marshall considers an important and challenging aspect as judge. Despite the final ruling, Marshall said it is of the upmost importance provide the opportunity for everyone “to be heard.”
Among Marshall’s goals as potential District Court 1 Judge is to increase the effectiveness of the specialized courts, such as the DUI court. Marshall also would like to implement additional specialized courts including a mental health court. As with most counties, and particularly rural counties, Marshall interprets drug and alcohol abuse a major concern within Clallam County and would like to better incorporate the legal system to explore the root and causation of the problems rather than just the aftermath.
One of the major changes Marshall would like to implement, or rather remove from District Court 1, is the Pay or Appear program.
“To me it (Pay or Appear program) is preying on the poorest of the poor,” Marshall said. “There are other ways to deal with this that does not involve jail time for fines, which I think is improper use of jails.”
In addition the Pay or Appear program has cost the City of Port Angeles to exceed its criminal justice budget primarily because of increased jail time and the associated expenses, Marshall said. Instead of continuing to use the Pay or Appear program, Marshall suggest using a collection agency similar to District Court 2.
“I think it’s important that people are held responsible for their crimes and fines, and I don’t have any intention on being soft on crime, but there are other ways to deal with fines other than jail time,” Marshall said. “I think a District Court judge can offer people hope and help, and that’s my goal.”
2014 Clallam County Elections
The general election is Tuesday, Nov. 4.
Ballots are being mailed out to all registered voters on Oct. 15, and mail ballots must be post-marked on or before Election Day to be counted.
Drop boxes at the following sites will accept ballots until 8 p.m. Nov. 4.
• Auditor’s Office, Clallam County Courthouse
Monday-Friday: 8:30 a.m.-4:30 p.m.
Election Day: 7 a.m.-8 p.m.
• Clallam County Courthouse — Outside, 223 E. Fourth St., Port Angeles
• Sequim Village Shopping Center, near the City’s utility payment drop box in the JCPenney’s parking lot
2014 elections coverage:
DIstrict COurt I Judge — Rick Porter
