Tuesday, December 12, 2006
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Proprietor of Bagel Shop to be Assigned to Pomona Courthouse
Czuleger Makes Assignments of Eight Who Prevailed in Judicial Contests
By a MetNews Staff Writer
Speculation as to where Los Angeles Superior Court Judge-Elect Lynn Diane Olson will be sitting when she assumes judicial duties on Jan. 8 ended yesterday with the release of assignments for eight persons who have gained election as judges, with Olson being relegated to the county’s East District.
That district—remote from her home in Hermosa Beach—is comprised of courts in Pomona, West Covina, and El Monte.
It had been rumored that she would be going to Pomona shortly after her surprise win on June 7 over veteran Los Angeles Court Judge Dzintra Janavs, who has since been reappointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger. Olson’s election victory drew wide attention because the challenger had been an inactive member of the State Bar for most of the time since her admittance to practice on Dec. 11, 1989, and was proprietor, along with her husband, of a Manhattan Beach bagel and sandwich shop.
She was rated “not qualified” by the Los Angeles County Bar Assn., while Janavs was found to be “exceptionally well qualified.” The election result was generally attributed to Olson’s heavy spending on slate mailers and to Janavs’ foreign-sounding name.
The distance between her home in Hermosa Beach and the Pomona courthouse is 48.59 miles, which is estimated to require a 57-minute drive in normal traffic. Directions on MapQuest show a need to travel on six freeways and three highways.
Orders signed yesterday by Los Angeles Superior Court Presiding-Judge-Elect J. Stephen Czuleger indicated the districts to which new judges would be assigned, but not the courthouses, with that detail being left to the supervising judges of the districts. Thomas Falls, who is supervising judge of the East District, could not be reached for comment yesterday as to where Olson would be stationed or what sort of cases she will handle.
Olson will not, however, have the longest distance to drive of all new judges. Hayden Zacky, who lives in Valencia, will be obliged to drive 55 miles to the courthouse in Lancaster. Zacky, who won in a Nov. 7 run-off, was one of four successful contenders in that election to be appointed Dec. 6 by Schwarzenegger, and was sworn in yesterday.
The other appointees are Deputy District Attorneys Daviann Mitchell and David Stuart, whom Czuleger yesterday placed in the Clara Shortridge Foltz Criminal Justice Center, and Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Bobbi Tillmon, who will remain in the West District. Tillmon was unopposed but her name appeared on the November ballot after having been erroneously omitted by the Registrar-Recorder’s Office from the June ballot.
Mitchell is slated to take the oath of office tomorrow, Stuart on Dec. 26, and Tillmon on Dec. 29.
The incoming court chief yesterday also ordered that two members of the Los Angeles City Attorney’s Office, Susan Lopez-Giss (who won in June) and Deborah Sanchez (who prevailed in a November run-off) serve in the East District, and routed Deputy District Attorney Dan Lowenthal (a victor in the primary) to the Southeast District.
Judith Meyer, who gained a June victory over two opponents, gained an early appointment from the governor and was sworn in Aug. 31. She has been sitting in Compton, where she will remain next year.
Copyright 2006, Metropolitan News Company