Speaker 0: The minutes are before us. No discussion. All those in favor. Please say I oppose. Nay. The ayes have it. The minutes are approved. That brings us to the first of two items on today's council agenda. Committee agenda. That being motion 2019 641. The filling of a district court vacancy. There is a vacancy in the King County District Court, Northeast Division, due to the passing of Judge Peter Nolte pursuant to County Code. I instructed staff to coordinate interviews with eligible applicants, and the committee that conducted those interviews consisted of council members Lambert, Dombrowski and myself. We conducted six interviews through the week of November 4th and are recommending three candidates as finalists to be interviewed today. The county code requires a procedural motion to select the finalist to be interviewed. And I'd like to call on Councilmember Dombrowski to make that motion now.
Speaker 3: Thank you very much, Mr. Chair, and thank you for setting forward this process that's led to today's recommended candidates. And I believe you would like a motion, an oral motion that this committee, the committee will accept the subcommittee's recommendation that we interview three candidates for the vacancy. And those three candidates are Jessica Jenner, Kevin Peck and Ronna Rampersad. And I apologize for any errors in the names, but that's the motion I make at this time.
Speaker 0: Thank you very much. Councilmember DEMBOSKY has made the motion that we interview the committee subcommittee's three recommendations. All those in favor, please say I opposed nay. The ayes have it. With that, we'll proceed with the full committee interviews of the finalists. We'll provide about 15 minutes for each interview until the finalists are before the panel for the interview, I'm asking that they step into the side conference room in the Blue Room so they don't hear the questions that were asked of the first interviewee. And we randomly assigned order before the meeting began. And Mr. Peck will go first. Before I excuse you, I will ask members if there are any procedural questions. Sam Porter is here to answer any questions or add anything that I have forgotten and help me field any members questions. Councilmember Gossett.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Are there going to be time limits on the candidates? Time to respond to our questions.
Speaker 0: Their opening and closing remarks. I've asked them to limit those to 2 minutes, and I had not planned on keeping a hard stop on responses to each of their questions. But I would hope we as a panel might think of about 15 minutes total for each one of the three interviews.
Speaker 2: Thank you.
Speaker 0: Further, Councilmember Colwell.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Do we have available the materials submitted by the applicants?
Speaker 0: Miss Porter.
Speaker 1: Contributed binders.
Speaker 0: Even.
Speaker 1: Here. Well, let me look here, but.
Speaker 0: I'll find it.
Speaker 4: Yourself.
Speaker 1: Okay. Thank you, Patrick.
Speaker 0: And in.
Speaker 1: My office.
Speaker 0: All right. So, having no further questions, I would ask Mjolnir and Ramprasad to step out. Mr. Peck to join the committee at the presentation table.
Speaker 5: Huh? Right. That might come.
Speaker 0: Mr. Pitt. Good afternoon. We're still in open session. And I want to again thank you for your interest in the judicial seat that's opened in the North-East District Court, welcoming you here to the committee of the hall and invite you to give us an opening set of remarks in about 2 minutes if you'd be so kind. Well, thank you for the honor to address the council. Again, my name is Kevin Peck, and I've served my entire legal career as a trial lawyer in King County over the past 36 years. And during that time, I've specialized in both criminal law and civil law, the civil cases being personal injury cases and employment matters. I've also been honored over the past 29 years to serve as a pro tem judge in the King County District Courts and as an arbitrator in the King County Superior Courts. I've now presided over thousands of hearings in the King County District courts, and those include criminal cases, civil cases, bench trials and jury trials. And I enjoy serving as a pro tem judge. Often I'll have up to 60 cases in the morning and 60 cases in the afternoon, and I enjoy the pace. I'm proud to be endorsed for this position by ten King County District Court judges, including the presiding judge of the East division where the vacancy is located, and every other judge in the East Division, including the Honorable Michelle Gilbertson and the Honorable Jill Kling, who are both appointed by this council in July. In addition, I've been endorsed by three retired judges from the East Division. Many of these judges I helped cover their calendars and trials over the years. I discussed their cases with them, and in many respects I've served as a colleague to them. Many of them have pointed out to me, based on knowing my the quality of my work, that if I was selected for this position, they believe I could fill in the position and hit the ground running on day one. They've also pointed out to me that the versatility that I bring to the court based on having both a civil law background and a criminal law background. Finally, many of the court staff I worked with for years have pointed out to me they enjoy working with me and they hope that I'm selected for the position. The King County District Court bench is a superb bench and if I'm honored to be selected for this position, it would be my goal to help improve and enhance that bench in any manner possible. So thank you again and I'd be happy to answer any questions. Thank you. And colleagues, there are prepared suggested questions that everybody please we have unscripted who might ask questions and I would take a volunteer to ask the first question. Councilmember Bell.
Speaker 1: DG Thank you, Mr. Chair. The first question is and welcome. Thank you again. You too. What is your view of the role of district court in King County?
Speaker 0: Well, my view of the role of district court in King County, it's the People's Court. So if people have an interaction with a court in King County, it's most likely the district court and many people that come to district court have never been in a courtroom before in their lives. So as a judge presiding in a district court, I make sure people are comfortable in the court. I mean, I use what I call procedural fairness and due process. I make sure they understand the type of the proceeding, what the process is going to be in the proceeding and what decisions are going to be made. And I want the process to be as transparent as possible. I want them to be treated with dignity and respect and feel that they had an opportunity to be heard. So at the end of the hearing, no matter what the outcome, they receive their full day in court. And I think that's the appropriate role of a judge. Thank you, Councilmember Gossett.
Speaker 2: Thank you very much, Mr. Chair. During the previous time that we interviewed you, you you talked to us briefly about your awareness of racial and economic and other kinds of inequalities that exist in our judicial system. So my question to you is, could you tell us what the terms racial and ethnic disparities generally means to you? And is there a role for a judge to help address these issues at the district court level?
Speaker 0: Yes, thank you. I think we all recognize and acknowledge that, unfortunately, in today's criminal justice system, there is some implicit racial bias and racial bias. I myself have taken three classes to studying on implicit racial bias. So when I've served as a pro tem judge, I've attempted to use what I've learned in those courses to combat bias in the criminal justice system. I've also spent a good part of my career working to try and eliminate discrimination in the workplace. So I think I recognize the signs of discrimination. As a judge, it's my role in the criminal justice system to ensure that no members of the public or none of the court staff is ever subjected to any type of discrimination in any courthouse I'm sitting in or any courtroom I'm sitting in. I think I've also worked with communities of color and diverse. Relations for years in my practice, and I think I understand some of the issues and problems that they face, and I think that's reflected by the ratings I receive from the Lord Miller Bar Association, the Latino Bar Association in color, which all exceptionally rated me exceptionally well qualified for this position.
Speaker 2: And what is Q law?
Speaker 0: It's the LGBT community.
Speaker 2: Okay. Thank you. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Speaker 0: Thank you. Thank you, Councilmember Dunn. Thank you.
Speaker 4: Sir. Mr. Beck, you and I had a chance to be together, at least on a couple of occasions against one another. And it's good to see you up there. My question involves the basic fact that the district court here in King County is really a high volume court. There's a lot going on. And I guess can you explain to me and others up here what elements in your training, background and experience have prepared you to effectively manage such a busy courtroom?
Speaker 0: Well, thank you. And it's good to see you. And I enjoyed litigating against you and when we had a chance. But I think my background I first started practicing. I was a public defender for almost three years, so we were attuned to handling large caseloads and many people learning the facts and circumstances in the unfortunate circumstances potentially that they were in and working to advocate them on on behalf of them as best as possible. I've continued to practice and represent indigent persons in Federal Court since that time, over the past 31 years. So I'm used to dealing with large caseloads. In my experience as a pro tem over the past 29 years, I'm used to dealing with the large calendars in the district court. Like I said, sometimes it's 60 matters in the morning and 60 matters in the afternoon. And to be frank, I think I thrive in that atmosphere. I enjoy the personal interaction with those that come before the district court. I enjoy learning the facts, applying the law. If it's new law, I look up the law, research law, or ask the parties to help provide research or briefing on the law. And I think I've excelled in providing the type of justice that people are deserving of in the district court. As a matter of fact, last time I gave an example of a lawyer I ran into in the lobby of the courthouse who I had denied a motion in Shoreline District Court. And he told me, you know, I understood that your ruling I thought it was a great ruling and I was uplifted by your ruling. And this is someone that I denied what the request was. So I think I've learned to provide the appropriate justice on a good, rapid basis in district court. Thank you. Thank you. And with the fourth question, Councilmember Paul Wells.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Kevin. Thinking hypothetically and envisioning the future. If you were to get the appointment, how how do you hope a court participant would describe her or his experience in your courtroom? And what steps would you take to accomplish that goal?
Speaker 0: That's a great question. So in my experience serving as a pro tem, I always address each individual litigant that appears before me, even if the lawyers start talking and want to move the case and it's just a continuance and they pass the continuance paperwork up. I make sure I address the person that appears in court. So it's obviously a significant matter to them. It could be the most significant thing occurring in their lives. And I want them to know that they felt respected, heard and I was involved in their decision that day. And as I described each and every case, I think a good attribute of a judge is having patience. I do handle it on a patient matter. I learn the facts and circumstances. I make the feel people feel respected. If they want to address the court, I listen to them. And before I issue any ruling or decision or continuance or whatever the case may be, I want them to feel that no matter what, that they had their full day in court. Thank you. Any questions from colleagues before we ask Mr. Peck for closing statement? Mr. Peck, you are closing remarks. Well, thank you, and thank you again for the honor to appear before you. I now practice criminal law in King County for the past 36 years, and I've been honored to be endorsed by the top law enforcement officials in the area, including King County prosecutor Dan Sater, Berg, Snohomish County Prosecutor Adam Cornell, and the former U.S. attorney, now Mayor Jenny Durkan. And I think these individuals endorsed me not only based on knowing me, but based on my reputation for honesty, integrity and fairness. I think it's also important to note that the vacancy created by the unfortunate passing of Judge Nault at the time he passed away, he was carrying a full civil caseload. And again, based on my experience, not only in criminal law, but in civil law, I think I would be ready to step in and handle a full civil caseload if requested by the court, to help eliminate that backlog. Over the past approximately two decades, I've been called by the court staff into the evening to see if I could pro tem the next day or often in the morning to see if I can fill in that day. And I've accepted as many of these appointments as possible because I love serving as a pro tem judge. Approximately a few weeks ago, my wife came across me early morning in the kitchen and she said, Are you protecting today? And I said, Yes. How did you know? She said, I can tell by your energy and enthusiasm. And I think I bring this energy and enthusiasm to this job. And if I'm honored to be selected for this position, I will bring that energy and enthusiasm to this job every single day. So thank you again for this opportunity. I really appreciate it. Thank you. Thank you very much. And we will take a minute while we have Miss Jen Genaro join us for her interview. Thank you. Thank you. Legionnaire, we want to thank you for joining us this afternoon and for your interest in the appointment to the North-East District Court and look forward to a conversation. I'd invite you to share opening remarks with us.
Speaker 6: All right. Thank you. Well, I would like to begin by thanking you, council members, for the opportunity to be here with you this afternoon. I am seeking this appointment because I believe in the ability of the King County District Court to empower individuals to improve their lives and to uphold the public's confidence in what justice is and what it can be. I currently serve nearly full time in King County, and it is a privilege for me to be on the bench nearly every day. I love this job. I love what the district court does. This is not a stepping stone for me. This is not a checkbox for me. I believe in the work that the District Court does to empower people to change their lives and to keep our communities safe. And the many letters of support submitted on my behalf, both from current members of the bench as well as from the legal community, I believe attest on their their humbling for me. But they speak to the sincerity of my desire to serve and my qualifications to do so. I began my legal career with nearly a decade of service as a prosecuting attorney before I spent a number of years working as a defense practitioner, and I appreciate the opportunity to have developed a balanced perspective from both of those roles. I then transitioned into service as a judge per term and have served in that capacity for approximately six years. I'm appointed in ten municipal courts and two district courts, but today I serve nearly full time in King County. This is not a once or twice a month commitment for me. I am on the bench nearly every day, and I walked away from my law practice in order to make this my primary occupation. During my career as a judge pro-tem, I have issued judicial rulings in more than 20,000 matters. I have sat in nearly every courthouse in this county, and I have served for the majority of our current sitting judges. I have presided over every area of the district courts, criminal jurisdiction, and most of the matters of the court civil jurisdiction as well. And this experience has left me uniquely qualified to not only manage the day to day responsibilities of the role, but to take on the administrative court of the work primary work of the court as well. My community investment is also an important part of who I am, both as an individual and as a judge part time. I live in King County and I serve in King County. My work with the Women's Advisory Board to the Council, along with a significant number of other youth focused community organizations, has enabled me to address the critical needs of those in King County. Many of these needs are tied to the very same issues that I see day in and day out during my service on the bench. I am seeking the opportunity to become an involved and engaged member of the bench, to serve the critical needs in King County, and to take on the difficult issues of bias and equity in our justice system, and to improve the public's confidence and faith in what that justice system is. I thank you again for your time and consideration, and I look forward to answering any questions that you may have for me.
Speaker 0: Thank you very much. Councilmember Banducci.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair. The first question we have for you is and first of all, welcome. It's good to see you again. What is your view of the role of district court in King County? And I understand you've covered this a little bit. If you could speak more specifically to that question.
Speaker 6: Yes, certainly. Thank you. I will say that one area in which I believe our district court unequivocally excels, that is innovation. We are the largest court of limited jurisdiction in Washington state, and as such, we have a tremendous amount of contact with the public, and that is incumbent upon our district court, therefore, not only to be innovators , but to set the model and the tone for what justice can be for the public's perception of our court system. One area that our district court certainly can work on is sustaining and expanding the scope of this innovation and applying that equitably throughout our county. And while I recognize that King County District Court, along with many other county programs and departments, is being asked to do more with less or more with the same. I do believe that King County District Court is up for the challenge, and I'm committed to serving as a judicial officer who is well equipped to respond to those challenges. I've had the privilege of protesting every Thursday for Judge Hahn while she worked on the committee to establish and to implement our new electronic electronic excuse me, case management system. I've also had the opportunity to work closely with Judge Stephenson and judge it to understand systematically how cases are now being processed within the court. Civil jurisdiction utilizing the new the IMF. In addition, I've had the opportunity to work and engage with Judge Pagel authority on our therapeutic court programs and to understand the process of expanding those court programs. And I've had a front row seat to the many opportunities to engage administratively in the work of the court in terms of direction in the future for the court. I strongly support expansion of the electronic CMS. I believe that we need to expand that to other areas of the court's civil jurisdiction and hopefully someday to the court's areas of criminal jurisdiction as well. I also believe that we need to focus on sustaining not only our therapeutic courts, but the network of resource providers serving US courts so that we can address the underlying causes of criminal behavior rather than just treating the symptoms as we see in recidivism rates. And I think as a court, we also need to give significant focus to our cash bail system. Our cash bail system is a factor that we need to consider with regard to examining the cost of housing individuals who are charged with misdemeanor offenses based upon and held in custody based upon their inability to post bond rather than based upon a meaningful finding by the court of their likelihood to fail to appear to court or likelihood to pose a risk to city of community. And I am committed to engaging with all of these concepts with innovation and with vigor and with engagement as a member of the bench. Thank you.
Speaker 0: Councilmember Gossett.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Mr. Chair. The term racial and ethnic disparities exist and all you as many people feel in all U.S. institutions, particularly public ones like the judicial system. Do you agree with that assessment? If so, why? If you disagree that racial and ethnic disparities is a serious problem, also tell us why.
Speaker 6: Thank you for that question. Unfortunately, we are a system of disproportionality. When one in 38 arrests in King County is an African-American individual compared to only one in 200 white individuals. We have clear and unequivocal evidence of disproportionality in our system. I am personally invested in addressing issues of bias and disproportionality within the realm of the district court, not just by engaging academically, which I have done to a significant degree, but also by meeting with individuals and the organizations that represent the communities most impacted by bias and disproportionality within King County. This predominantly impacts communities of color, for example, those impacted by gender based violence or those from economically disadvantaged circumstances. My work with the Women's Advisory Board, as well as a number of a significant number of other King County organizations, has been based on a desire to address the need to promote equity and address disproportionality and bias in our justice system in King County. I've had the opportunity to host a high school classroom visit into our district court courtrooms. I volunteer to coach a YMCA mock trial team. I also serve with the Girl Scouts of Western Washington, a little league all done with the intent of understanding what the critical needs are in King County and placing myself in a position to be able to respond to those needs in King County. I have had the privilege of overcoming personal obstacles in order to access education in my life. And I believe that it's critical that I share that education, that experience with our community. And again, we can do that through a number of assets. Councilmember To address the second part of your question, including focusing on our therapeutic courts, but also giving meaningful, considerate consideration, excuse me to the cash bail system. The cash bail system has caused an avalanche of criminal convictions that are that are not based entirely upon the evidence , but rather upon an individual's desire to have their case over with so they can be released from custody and avoid placing their housing, their medical care, their employment in jeopardy. And I think that we need to give consideration as judicial officers and whether or not this results in authentic justice. We also need to look at jury composition in King County. Recent statistical data is indicating that we're now approaching 8%. Population is African-American. Only 4% of our jury pool population is typically African-American. And we need to give consideration on the implications from that type of data. Lastly, I do believe we also need to focus on youth resources at the District Court. We need to improve opportunities for young people to engage with our courts, form positive associations with our courts, and to reduce the school's school to prison pipeline as well. And we will incorporate all of these considerations into my practice on the bench. Thank you.
Speaker 2: Thank you very much for the response.
Speaker 0: Thank you, Councilmember Dunn.
Speaker 4: Thank you, Mr. Chair. And thanks for your interest in taking on a role like this in a full time basis. As you know, more than most, I suspect, district court is a high volume court. Lots going on there. And so really, can you speak to what elements in your in your training, your background, your experience have prepared you to manage what can be a very busy courtroom?
Speaker 6: Absolutely. Well, it's not uncommon to see court calendars with an exceedingly high number of cases. I see this on a near daily basis in my practice on the courtroom, as we've talked about a little bit earlier this afternoon, we are at the district court being asked to do more with existing resources. D.U.I. case filings has significantly increased and that it does take consideration both by our judicial officers, but by our very dedicated court staff to be able to successfully process higher numbers of case filings. However, it is critical that court efficiency should never come at the cost of due process. And in my significant experience as a judge pro time, I have developed a number of case management strategies that enabled me on a daily basis to balance due process with efficiency of the court and with efficiency of court resources. Some examples include my preparation before court. Each day I invest time to prepare my calendars before I even step on the bench. I review every case on a court calendar. This enables me to not only understand the history of the case and to understand why it's sat on that specific calendar and what you are hoping to accomplish . But also ensures that I understand why we're all here day and I can give meaningful consideration to it. I take the time to prepare notes for myself for every case that is on my calendar. And this allows not only a smooth transition from case to case, but also helps me to avoid delay in researching the cases individually while I'm on the bench, as they're called up, I also enter the courtroom on time. I understand that the attorneys and the parties before the court have taken care technology issues aside to appear on time in court, and I want to extend them that same courtesy as well. Once I step onto the bench, I stay on the bench. And I understand that sometimes the attorneys need additional time to discuss their cases before they are able to be presented to the court. But I'm also fully aware that while the court is on the bench, there are a number of individuals seated in the back of the courtroom waiting for their cases to be called. And I think it's important for them to see the district court is here and we're working hard for them and we're ready to hear their case. I also maintain a demeanor of judicial court decorum excuse me, throughout the calendar. It's important that my temperament on the bench upholds the public's confidence in the respect and equity and fairness of our court system. And I'm very aware of that. And while I recognize at the end of the day, some calendars are just going to be long calendars I may experience, has it still instilled strong case management practices in me? And I plan to continue those on not just as the judge for time, but as a member of the district court bench. Thank you.
Speaker 0: Thank you very much, Councilmember Colwell.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair. I'd like you to just think about what your courtroom would be like in the future when you are, you know, on the bench there. How do you hope a court participant would describe her or his experience in your courtroom? And what steps would you take to accomplish what you would like to have happen?
Speaker 6: That is the question Councilmember I've given significant consideration to. I spoke a little bit about the importance of a judicial officers demeanor, upholding the public's confidence in the equity and the fairness of our justice system. And that is that concept is one of the cornerstones that I have developed my own personal judicial philosophy based upon. During my nearly six years as a judge pro-tem, I've had the opportunity to develop a strong judicial philosophy that is based upon the cornerstones of respect and commitment to public service. I have learned that the perception of justice is just as important as justice itself, but we unfortunately can have neither. If the judge does not establish a courtroom of fairness and equity and justice and respect, and as a judge pro tem, I treat every person who appears before me in court with respect, and I would continue that practice as a seated member of the District Court as well. It does not matter if that person is a pro se litigant, a criminal defendant, a witness, an attorney, an alleged victim in the case. Each person who enters the courtroom before me will be treated with equity and fairness and respect. Judicial officers are charged with not only administering the law, but, as I have said before, with upholding the public's confidence in the integrity of the law and of our court system. And that is a very big task. That is not an easy one, and there's no one short answer. But I can assure the Council that it is my judicial practice and this will remain unchanged to approach my service on the bench as a commitment to public service and to upholding the public's confidence in our court system. Thank you.
Speaker 0: Thank you very much. See no other questions from my colleagues. I might invite you to share closing remarks with us.
Speaker 6: Thank you very much. And council members, I would like to thank all of you again for the opportunity to be before you today. I am seeking this appointment because I am committed to using my extensive experience in order to serve our county. In addition to my extensive experience as a legal practitioner, I have served as a Judge Pro-Tem for nearly six years, and during that time I've had the opportunity to issue judicial rulings on more than 20,000 matters. My primary occupation has become nearly full time service as a judge pro-tem in King County District Court, and that experience has prepared me to transition seamlessly into the role of appointed judicial officer. Not only am I extraordinarily comfortable with the day to day responsibilities of the role, I am ready to take on the administrative challenges and practices of the court as well. Serving in the court nearly every day and having the support and mentorship of current sitting members of the bench, has enabled me to understand the issues that are critical to serving on the King County District Court bench in. Looting, continued work to transition and implement the new electronic case management system, as we discussed earlier, to hopefully extend that to other areas of the court's jurisdiction as well, but to also expand and sustain our therapeutic court programs and the network of community resource providers who serve those programs to actively engage with the district in Municipal Court Judges Association in order to foster collaboration and create an even greater impact for the resources of our county, as well as to to balance the need to manage increased case filings with existing court resources. My track record of community service, I believe, speaks to my deep and abiding commitment in public service. Not only have I served as a member of the Women's Advisory Board to this Council. I also volunteer to coach a YMCA mock trial team. I volunteer to host high school classroom visits into our district court courtrooms, and they serve with a significant number of youth based organizations. King County Wide. I have the support of the bench and our legal community, and in addition to my reading, I believe again that the letters of support filed on my behalf by those individuals can attest to the sincerity of my desire to serve and my commitment to do so. I am passionate about my work and I'm passionate about public service, and I will take the same deep commitment into serve on the District Court Bench. I am seeking this appointment so that I might have the privilege of applying my experience and my community investment to serve us on the District Court Bench. I thank you again for your time and your consideration of me. It's been a pleasure to be here this afternoon.
Speaker 0: I want to thank you for joining us and for Indigenous in this conversation and with that institute.
Speaker 3: I'm sorry, council members obviously a late breaking question, but I had the chance to ask the questions during the interview panel. But this one occurs to me, because of the candidate's particular experience in the district court, sitting pro-tem is by invitation of the of the judge, as I understand it, who normally presides in the courtroom. And and I don't know the answer to this, but I'm curious, has there been, in all of your experience, talked about 20,000, you say judicial decisions.
Speaker 6: Or 20,000 judicial decisions.
Speaker 3: As there has. Has there been a time and there could be any number of reasons, stylistically or otherwise, where you're aware of not being invited back to pro tem for a judge? And if so, did can you tell us perhaps why that might have occurred to the extent you know?
Speaker 6: Quite candidly, I am not aware of any circumstance where I have not been invited back. I can tell you I still consistently serve in all of the courts from which I was originally appointed. And as I think you're likely aware, Councilmember Dombrowski, if a judicial officer is displeased with the work that you're doing on the bench, if you are not able to treat court staff, for example, respectfully or the attorneys, then the parties who appear before you respectfully, if you're not able to efficiently manage your courtroom calendar and to do so in a way that exhibits respect for the community and the justice process unequivocally would not be asked back. Right.
Speaker 3: Thank you for. That's helpful to me. Thanks. All right.
Speaker 0: And with that, I want to thank you for engaging in the conversation and invite Mr. Lemon to invite Ms.. Rampersad out. And Mr. Chair, just.
Speaker 4: Why we have a break in between. When I authorize the packets to go out, I mean, I didn't notice that the motion wasn't included. So this is the blank motion that would actually appoint the person if you insert a name mark and are handing out copies right now. So I'll put that.
Speaker 2: In front of you.
Speaker 1: Make a unity between.
Speaker 2: You and I. Recommendations from all seven. Yet she only got interviewed by six.
Speaker 0: Watch this picture. Of course. Welcome back.
Speaker 6: Yeah.
Speaker 5: Yeah, yeah. Okay.
Speaker 0: Thank you. Good afternoon, Ms.. Rampersad. Thank you for your interest in serving on the North-East District Court. I welcome you to the committee, the hall for a conversation. I you conversation with the entire committee and would invite you to begin with opening remarks.
Speaker 6: Thank you and thank you for having me here today. The King County Bar Association excuse me, the King County Bar Association rated me exceptionally well qualified to serve on the King County District Court bench. But if the council remembers just one thing about me, remember I get things done. And I have created this chart that I just, Madam Clerk, just handed forward to the council members to illustrate how my qualifications line up with the skills necessary to be an outstanding District Court judge, and also to explain the what, where, why and how I get things done. I'd like to draw the Council's attention to three things on this chart. One of them is I get things done in high pressure, high volume environments. So, for example, I presided over hearings at the United Nations where I determined who was a terrorist and should be excluded, therefore, from resettlement to the United States. Second, I get things done under intense budget constraints, and that's my administrative skills down there at the bottom. At those hearings, I had one pen excuse me, and I was told, don't lose.
Speaker 1: It.
Speaker 6: Because the supply truck won't be coming for another ten weeks, so you won't get another one. But I've also managed multi-million dollar budgets, funding projects across the entire nation of China, and I have experience designing, implementing and expanding new programs. So, for example, on top of a heavy civil legal aid caseload, I designed obtain funding for and implemented a pilot project that was duplicated across multiple countries. And third, the most important thing, what motivates me to get things done, and that's the top line here, public service dedication. Every decision in my career has been driven by my desire to serve where I saw a need. I didn't go live in a tent on the border of a war zone or advocate for criminal justice reform under the surveillance of the Chinese government because those things were safe or easy or comfortable. I did those things because I felt compelled to serve where I could make a meaningful contribution. And I see that same possibility here to bring that wealth of experience. I've had the opportunity to gain to serve my home community as a King County District Court judge. So thank you for having me here today, and I'll be happy to answer the council's questions.
Speaker 0: Thank you very much. Councilmember Bell Balducci.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair. It's Syrian. The first question we have prepared is, what is your view of the role of district court in King County?
Speaker 6: My view of the role, well, I will say something about my judicial philosophy, and that is that I don't view the role of a judge as a neutral. I know that's a phrase that a lot of people say, but to me, it just conveys a limp noodle. You know, you're not there to be passive. I see it as being a fierce and passionate advocate for the rule of law and for due process. So the role of a judge is not to be an advocate for either side or to put the put my finger on the scales for either party or try their case, but to be an advocate for the integrity of the process. And I'll give you an example. So if during a jury trial, for example, a party proposes a limiting instruction, so evidence is admissible for one reason but not another. So a party proposes a limiting instruction, but it's a misstatement of the law. So then I would have an obligation not just to be calling balls and strikes and say, no, that's rejected. It's wrong. I have an affirmative obligation to provide a correct statement of the law and then provide that limiting instruction. And that's a view of the law that the Washington State Supreme Court has told us trial courts have that affirmative obligation. So I see the role of a judge as as upholding the rule of law and safeguarding that process for everyone.
Speaker 1: Thank you.
Speaker 0: Thank you, Councilmember Gossett.
Speaker 2: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Oftentimes in the U.S., you hear a lot of folks talking about terms related to racial and ethnic disparities when talking about big public institutions. And it's often talked about in relationship to the criminal justice system. So my question to you is whether or not you believe that or what you think racial and ethnic disparities mean to you. And then do you think that that is a challenge or our problem and the judicial system, particularly the district at the district court level? Yes or no? And why?
Speaker 6: Well, absolutely it's a problem. I think statistics has borne that out. We see that people of color are more likely to be drawn into the criminal justice system, to be drawn in multiple times, and to have more serious or disproportionate outcomes from the criminal justice system sentencing bill. And, you know, the biggest example of that was the Washington State Supreme Court fairly recently striking down our death penalty in the state, saying that it was disproportionately implemented and that was shown by statistical evidence. So in my view, it's not it's not really up for debate anymore, whether it's a problem. The question is what to do about it. And there are a lot of things that can be done. I think we're making progress on that front and awareness. People can go to trainings and as a judge, I could ensure that my staff go to trainings to understand our own biases. I, as a person of color, also, I'm not free from that influence. I've taken the the online bias, implicit bias test. And people of color can be biased against people of their own group or against other people of color. So it's a thing that we all need to be aware of. Something in my personal life that I have done to address on my own behalf as I have gone to other countries to live in other places where I am a minority there. So I've lived in Kenya and I've lived in China, I've lived in Tanzania, those places. Those experiences inform my understanding of how those issues and people interact in our own societies. So I think it's given me a different perspective and a lens through which to view things here, and it can definitely creep in to all kinds of decision making at the district court as the court that most people interact with in our community. So I think being aware of it and always consciously thinking about my own biases and setting those aside when making decisions is one thing that can be done to to address that.
Speaker 2: Thank you very much.
Speaker 0: Councilmember Dunn.
Speaker 4: Thank you, Mr. Chair. And thank you so much for your interest in what is a very, very important job here in King County and, of course, across the state. The role of the district courts is really critical. It's really where the rubber meets the road. And it is a very high volume court, as you know. And so I guess the question I sort of have is what what elements in your training, your background, your experience have prepared you to really effectively manage such a busy, busy courtroom?
Speaker 6: Absolutely. Yes. I think my experience as a public defender in Yakima, Pierson, to a lesser degree, King County district courts. So I've had, for example, 5 minutes in the hallway with a client speaking to them through an interpreter, trying to get someone to understand important constitutional rights, make a decision about a deal that maybe they have. Should we set this over? Should we take the deal? You know, and sometimes that's the only time I would have to handle that. I've also been, you know, the hearings that I handled as the decision maker at the U.N. I would have an hour to interview 30 people. And it's my responsibility to screen out who is the terrorist who I don't want to resettle to my country and who is a civilian. And I don't want to have my issues of bias deny someone and doom them to a life in a refugee camp when they're when they have a credible asylum claim. So I've I've dealt with being a decision maker and assisting other people, making decisions as a as a defense attorney. And recently, I've I've had some pro-tem experience at Edmonds Municipal Court, which is also very high volume civil cases and criminal cases. So I know that I have the experience to do that, and I have a strategy. My strategy is be prepared. Make sure that I prepare as much as possible for all my hearings and prioritize during the hearings. So certain cases, maybe you're running up against a constitutional time limit. We need to. Handle those today. Other cases could be set over if we run out of time. So so prioritizing with absolutely necessary to get done or what issues within the case must be addressed today and what issues could be set over. And also not panicking because there's always something that comes up that's unexpected. So having a reasoned step by step way to handle issues that arise that I don't anticipate or to handle de-escalation strategies within a courtroom when people are not behaving, maybe appropriately. So those are all tools that I use to manage the caseload in a high volume docket.
Speaker 4: Great. Thank you.
Speaker 0: And Councilmember Rico Wells.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair, and welcome. I'd like you to imagine your court run in the future when and if you are a district court judge. How do you hope a court participant would describe her or his experience in your courtroom? And what steps would you take to accomplish that?
Speaker 6: Yeah, I would want someone to walk out of the courtroom feeling like they had been heard and they had been treated with dignity. And I keep quotes from from people throughout my legal career that are motivational to me. Quotes from clients or quotes from people I've interacted with, and I included two of those in my application. One is, thank you for treating me with dignity and respect, and the other is thank you for treating me like a person. And one of those quotes is from a person I prosecuted and another is from a person I represented. And that is very important to me to feel that everyone has their day in court, everyone feels respected and they feel heard because on a good day, you know, you'll have a 50% approval rating on your decision. There's always somebody who goes home unhappy with the outcome or, you know, on a on a better day, maybe both people are equally disappointed in how things turned out. Right. So to me, the goal of a judge is not to make everyone happy, but to make everyone feel heard and respected.
Speaker 0: Thank you. Thank you. And thank you very much for the conversation. Closing remarks. Oh, okay.
Speaker 6: Judicial excellence. It requires two things. Competence in the law and informed compassion. How can the Council know that I will be competent in the law? I attended Georgetown University Law Center. I clerked for then Chief Justice Mattson on the Washington State Supreme Court, and I passed the Washington, New York and Tulalip Bar exams on the first try . Oh, that was a long time ago. So why does that still matter? Because you, the council, can be confident that I have the intellectual capacity to do this job and to do it well. I also have an exposure to a wide variety of roles and subject areas in the law. And in particular, my appellate work has given me a unique perspective. So I like to think of appeals as trial autopsies. What went wrong and why? And that's given me a database of issues in my head to be able to see how to avoid costly and inefficient appeals. If things aren't done right the first time. And it also has led me to understand that appellate courts will correct errors of law. They will not correct errors of judgment, which is why it's critically important to have a trial court judge who has informed compassion. And to me, that means having the judgment and the life experience to understand different types of people, because the role of a judge in district court is to influence behavior. And a person with addiction issues or a mental health crisis, or who is experiencing a prior trauma. Those influence those things influence the decision making process. And so informed compassion means understanding that context. It means setting bail and sentencing and treatment order decisions, using those to give people the tools to succeed, to influence their behavior, and also ultimately to make our community safer. With my background, I am uniquely qualified to make those calculations, and the counsel can have confidence I will make those decisions with perspective and with balance. So in closing, I am seeking this appointment because I love the law. I love people and I would love the opportunity to serve my home community as a King County District Court judge. Thank you.
Speaker 0: Thank you very much.
Speaker 6: Shall I.
Speaker 0: Go? You don't have to excuse yourself from the chamber. And Mr. Lehman, if you didn't. You're welcome to invite the other applicants interviewees back. Colleagues, would we like a few minutes in executive session? Okay, then we will go into executive session and for everyone's information, we will do that. The council members will move into the Blue Room so we don't have to clear the chambers. Fewer people moving in that case. And to that end, the committee needs to discuss the matter in executive session. The grounds for executive session under RTW 4231 ten one h are is to evaluate the qualifications for appointment to elective office. The committee needs to be in executive session for approximately 15 minutes until about 305. I'm asking the clerk to post the doors to this effect, and I'm asking that I'm asking the council members to step into the Blue Room to have that discussion. Thank you. We're coming out of executive session. Welcome back. And for emotional call on Council Member Col Wells.
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair. I moved proposed motion 2019 0461.
Speaker 0: Council member Cole Wells has moved adoption of Motion 2019 for six one. That's the motion making the appointment to the District Court with a blank in it for inserting the name of the person we would appoint and as introduced prior to today's meeting and to make an amendment to that motion. Councilmember Dombrowski.
Speaker 3: Thank you, Mr. Chair. On line 25, it is blank. And I would like to offer to amend that to insert the name of Kevin Peck.
Speaker 0: Councilmember Damascus moved to amend the motion. The motion to insert the name of Kevin Peck, Council member Dombrowski.
Speaker 3: Thank you, Mr. Chair. This is probably and I've said on the interview committee, I think in my six years here for every one of these vacancies and we've done up maybe seems like ten of them, this has probably been the most difficult decision among the three advanced candidates that I feel that I've had to made and could certainly vote for any of them. And I hope I get to vote for all of them before my time on this council is done. But Mr. Peck comes before us with a significant amount of experience. He comes before us with four exceptionally well-qualified ratings from the bar rating organizations and three well-qualified. He appeared before us on the last two vacancies and I think made a strong case for how he would fit in on the district court vacancy and for the Northeast. The other candidates, I want to say, are extremely impressive. And to that to that point, we couldn't make a I don't think a bad decision here. And I wanted to just express my appreciation. I'm making this motion, frankly, procedurally as the third person who sat on the committee in this process here. But I think it is the I think without knowing for sure, because we don't decide things in executive session and not knowing for sure. I think it probably is the maybe it reflects the majority of the will of the council at this time. But the other two candidates, Michener and Mr. Rampersad, I just want to say how impressed I was and am with each of you and believe and hope that you that we'll see you again if you remain interested in this particular part of your legal career. I know you have a lot to offer, and I want to express my personal appreciation for your application. And we'll see. I don't I don't know, Mr. Peck, if this motion to amend is going to carry. Okay. So there's there's my basis for it, Mr. Chair.
Speaker 0: Thank you. Council members investigate further discussion. I'm on my own behalf. I would echo some of what Councilmember Dombroski said about the strength of all three candidates we've interviewed today. And all three of you bring a very different a different set of qualifications to serve on the district court. Each one of you is exceptional in what you bring in the work that you've done to this point. Miss Jenn-Air, the dedication you have to district court and serving and the temperament with which you speak would serve continues to serve. District Court exceptionally well. Ms. Rampersad The diversity of experience different from what we would see many other judicial appointees or judges being elected to the position and holding, I think, would be a real enrichment to the bench. And it's been a pleasure. I'm getting to know and talking with both of you through this process. And Mr. Peck, the record of involvement in the criminal justice system, in the overall justice system throughout your career and including as a member, as a pro-tem judge, speaks well to your ability to do the job, do the job well, and excel in it from day one. For the comments, colleagues. Councilmember Gossett.
Speaker 2: All I can say, Mr. Chair, is that I concur with you and Councilwoman Dombroski all three. And what's particular to me is that we were about in the same space last time. We had two very qualified female that had applied for the job. We had two jobs opening. We gave it to both of them because they were so well qualified. We told Kevin, who competed against them, that he did well and we hope he would continue to try this time around. We haven't voted yet, but it may be a juxtaposition, and I wanted to strongly encourage the two competitors of Mr. Peck to please stay involved at the judicial arena, which you will as lawyers. But you all both of you are going to make excellent judges at the at the district court, superior or even higher someday. And I hope that we're able to communicate that feeling to you. And if Kevin wins the vote, I also think you are going to be a superb and extremely experience and successful judge, and I'd be very surprised if you were not. So I wish all three of you well on behalf of the King County Council and the people that all of us are are looking forward to serve. Thank you, Mr. Chair.
Speaker 0: Thank you. Councilmember Dunn.
Speaker 4: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Appreciate it. Three of the best candidates ever seen for this job. So I mean I mean that seriously, somebody is going to get in local and federal courts. So it's great stuff. Mr. Peck, enforcer, seven months ago now and we indicated that and I indicated in my comments at that time that, you know , frequently what I see here is people who are interviewing and if they don't get the nomination on their first attempt months or years later, they're back here before us again. And they frequently do get it at that time. And in a minute when I said that and I think other members echo that. And and so I have a lot of confidence, Mr. Peck, in your ability to to take on the judiciary here. But all of you are some really, really great interviews, and I would urge you to stay interested in this. District court is really where the rubber meets the road, and a good bench requires different temperaments, talents and convictions to be on it and to share information with their colleagues. And so the forward in support of Mr. Peck's nominations, do you look forward to the opportunities that abound in the future for the others? Thank you.
Speaker 0: And they'll do.
Speaker 1: Everything I would have to say has already been said. But I do want to make a brief statement about process through this process, because you will recall that we put in place this new process that requires the bar reviews for the bar ratings upfront in order to shrink the time it was taking as it was taking, as a very long time to fill vacancies. And I think we've succeeded in shortening the time to fill vacancies. But I feel like we may also have erected some barriers that we should inquire into for future appointments, because we heard from candidates that might have applied to our previous round if they had been able to get their bar ratings, that they were ready and willing to apply, but they weren't able to get the bar ratings because of the Bar Association's process. So I just want to ask that and there's no action required from us today, but I'm going to follow up to make sure that our process is open to everybody and gives them a fair chance to be competing for these jobs when they come, because they do seem to come up a fair bit. I think we've got an aging bar. We are filling retirements and things have some such. Thank you. And I'll just add my thanks to all of the candidates. You've all put a lot of time and heart and experience. And frankly, I was so impressed by how different all of your backgrounds are and you all bring something unique and very, very valuable to the work you're doing. And I also want to encourage you all to continue to seek judicial appointments, because I think you would all make excellent judges. And and I would love to see you get there. Thank you.
Speaker 0: Others in favor of amendment. The amendment from Council member Dombrowski added Mr. Peck's name please say I oppose nay. The amendment carries. We have motion 2019 for 61 as amended before us. I see no further discussion. Madam Quirk, would you please call the roll?
Speaker 1: Thank you, Mr. Chair. Councilmember Kimba Bell. Duty Councilmember Dombrowski. Councilmember Dunn. Hi. Councilmember Gossett I. Council Member. Cornwall Council Member Lambert, I. Council member of the Grove. Council member Van. Right now. Mr. Chair. Mr. Chair, the vote is 880 noes.
Speaker 0: Thank you. By your vote, we've given a do pass recommendation to motion 2019 for 61 and it will be advanced to full council, I believe, a week from Wednesday, regular course of action. And I want to thank my colleagues for the work. I want to thank all three of you for being interested in devoting time and resources and energy to pursuing the possibility. And I particularly want to add a note of appreciation to both Mr. Hamacher and particularly Sam Porter for this staff work in supporting us through the application and appointment process. Thank you. With that, we have one more item of business on today's agenda. That is motion 2019 for 59 establishing the 2020 state legislative agenda. For those watching at home where the county does is often constrained by state law.
A MOTION making an appointment to fill a judicial vacancy in the east division, northeast electoral district judge position number four of the King County district court.