New Chief Plans Changes For High Court

Washington Supreme Court Justice Barbara Durham made it clear Monday that change will be the byword for her court.

In her State of the Judiciary message to the Legislature, Durham outlined plans for changing the way judges are selected, downsizing the Supreme Court, changing the way the chief justice is chosen and making other alterations.

Durham, the first woman chief justice in state history, also addressed another problem - domestic violence.

“Domestic violence is a pervasive and systemic problem, and it is the No. 1 cause of injury to women in this country,” Durham said.

She said a survey shows the number of domestic violence petitions filed in the courts the past five years has increased by more than 400 percent.

Durham appeared to strongly favor a retention system for selecting judges for all of the state’s courts - municipal, Superior, appeals and Supreme Court.

Under that system, new judges would be appointed and after a minimum time in office, voters would have the option of dismissing or retaining them.