Local Judge Plans to Retire
|  Video
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| Andrew Keller |
| 11/8/2009 |
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| Judge Robert Wefald will, don`t mind this cliche, wear his robe for one last time, next December. He sent a letter to North Dakota Supreme Court Chief Justice Gerald VandeWalle saying he`ll be retiring when his second six-year term ends on December 31st of next year. He says it`s been an experience he wouldn`t trade for anything. "I could tell he was a little agitated, and I said you`re excused now, so he got up, started walking back, and he turned around back to me and said, "you`re an old smarty-pants." That`s the worst that`s ever happened to me," says Judge Robert Wefald. That`s Judge Wefald`s response to the question, `What`s the worst thing that`s ever happened to you while holding one of the South-Central District Judge position?` "This job, as a judge, is the best job a lawyer can ever have, it`s just a wonderful job," says Wefald. The Minot-native received his bachelor`s degree from the University of North Dakota in 1964. He joined the Navy for three years. He then received a law degree from the University of Michigan. He moved to Bismarck in 1970, where he had a private practice until 1980. In 1980, he was elected as the Attorney General. In 1984, he went back into private practice until 1998, when he was elected for his first six-year term. His second term began in 2004. He says at the end of 2010, that`s enough. "The people that come to court, even the hardened criminals, they ones who, they`re always nice and polite, if you`re always nice and polite to people, and you treat them with respect, I`ve never had a bad incident happen to me in court," says Wefald. He says respect is key in his position. "Some of the staff were calling me Judge Smarty-Pants for a while, but they got over that." He says after he`s retired, he`ll travel. "I love Paris, I`ve been there a couple of times, it`s phenomenal place, I`d like to go spend a little time in Paris when I retire." But he`s not migrating away to a warmer climate like Arizona or Florida, he`s staying right here. He says he`ll continue to be the chairman of Open Your Arms, a charity organization that helps families and children around Christmas time, and he believes he`ll work with the State Historical Society. "Of all the things people might say, smarty pants was, he wanted to say something, but he didn`t really want to be in contempt, and of course I didn`t hold him in contempt for judge smarty, just sit down, you`ll be ok." Judge Smarty Pants believes his retirement will open the door for the next person who wants the gratification of this position. Judge Wefald says he`s not going to be bored when he retires. He`ll be staying active in the community. |
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