Washington Supreme Court justice and Gonzaga grad to step down from bench

Washington state Supreme Court Justice Barbara Madsen will retire by the start of April, the court announced Monday.

Madsen is a graduate of Gonzaga Law School.

“I never imagined I would have the honor of being a justice of the Washington Supreme Court,” she said in a letter to Gov. Bob Ferguson. “I leave this position now with immense gratitude and humility for the opportunity to be part of the fabric of this great state.”

Ferguson is set to select Madsen’s replacement by April 3.

That individual will have to run for election later this year to fill out the rest of Madsen’s term.

“I want to express my deep appreciation to Justice Madsen for her lifetime of service to the people of Washington and the rule of law,” Ferguson said in a statement.

First elected in 1992, Madsen was the first woman to join the bench by election. Madsen was also the first woman to be elected to two terms as chief justice, serving from 2010 to 2017.

Her term would have ended in 2029.

Madsen’s retirement means a third of the justices on the bench will be new by next year.

Justice Raquel Montoya-Lewis announced her retirement last week. She intends to finish her term, and her seat will be filled during the November election.

This will give Ferguson another chance to appoint someone to fill a vacant seat after he selected Colleen Melody to fill the seat held by Mary Yu last year.

Another justice set to retire by the end of the year is Charles Johnson, who is required by law to retire after turning 75.

Johnson’s seat will be filled by election.