Metropolitan News-Enterprise

 

Friday, June 1, 2001

 

Page: 3

 

Sacramento’s Top Court Executive Appointed to New AOC Post

 

By Kimberly Edds, Staff Writer

 

Sacramento Superior Court Executive Officer Michael M. Roddy was appointed yesterday to be the first regional administrative director for Northern California for the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Roddy, 43, is the second of two regional administrative directors to be appointed to the brand new position, with former Ventura Superior Court Executive Officer Sheila Gonzalez being appointed a few months earlier to handle duties for Southern California courts.

“Mike’s extensive experience and leadership in the judicial branch will be invaluable to the courts, the Judicial Council, and the AOC as our branch continues its transition to state funding and unification of the trial courts,” AOC Chief Deputy Administrative Director Ronald G. Overholt said in a statement.

The executive officer of Sacramento county’s trial courts since 1994, Roddy said the decision to accept the new position was a difficult one.

“I really enjoy working with the Sacramento courts and I have children in high school here,” Roddy said. “These things are really important to me.”

The two regional administrative directors will be responsible for expanding services to the trial courts and to provide a liaison between the AOC and the courts, especially in the areas of technology, finance, and human resources.

But Roddy described his first order of business differently.

“My first challenge is going to be finding suitable office space,” Roddy joked.

Roddy will in charge of  32 counties in the Third and Fifth Appellate Districts: Alpine, Amador, Butte, Cala­veras, Colusa, El Dorado, Fresno, Glenn, Kern, Kings, Lassen, Madera, Mariposa, Merced, Modoc, Mono, Nevada, Placer, Plumas, Sacramento, San Joa­quin, Shasta, Sierra, Siskiyou, Stanislaus, Sutter, Tehama, Tri­nity, Tulare, Tuolumne, Yolo, and Yuba.

Roddy takes the job at a time when the courts are still going through growing pains of court unification and adjusting to state funding rather than depending on county resources. He assumes his new duties July 16.

“I’m going about 150 miles an hour right now,” Roddy said.

Roddy said he had to consider local court needs while functioning in the newly developed state funded environment.

“We need to strive [for] a balance between the statewide perspective and the local perspective,” Roddy said. “We need to provide support to a lot of small counties who need it and make sure that the local needs of courts are not lost.”

Prior to his work with the Sacramento trial courts, Roddy served as assistant executive officer of the San Diego Superior Court for six years.

Roddy received his undergraduate degree and a Certificate in Judicial Administration from USC.

Recruitment for candidates to fill Roddy’s position as executive officer of the Sacramento County Superior Court is currently under way.