Tuesday, September 1, 2009
Page 3
Retired Court Commissioner Sherman Juster Dead at 80
By a MetNews Staff Writer
Former Los Angeles Superior Court Commissioner Sherman Juster has passed away at the age of 80 after a long illness.
A private interment followed his Aug. 14 death, the family said.
Juster retired from the bench in 1989 after serving the court for 14 years, and moved to Mendocino County, where he raised Christmas trees and wine grapes, his widow, Susan Juster, said.
She remembered her husband as “a lifelong curious person,” with a love of farming and astronomy who also “enjoyed every minute of practicing law.”
Retired Commissioner Mark Weiss described his longtime friend and colleague as someone who, “especially on the bench, was a very, very caring individual.”
Juster “always followed the law, tempered with some passion,” Weiss said.
A native of Los Angeles, Juster attended Hamilton High School before heading north to UC Berkeley.
He left school to join the Marine Corps in 1950, serving three years in the Korean War.
After returning to Southern California, Juster enrolled at Southwestern Law School, earning his degree in 1957. He was admitted to the State Bar in January 1959 and became a partner with Rubin, Small & Juster in Beverly Hills
In 1966, Juster joined the Public Defender’s office, eventually becoming a senior trial deputy before being elected by the judges of the court as a commissioner in 1975. He spent much of his tenure on the bench trying criminal cases in the Antelope and San Fernando valleys.
Juster registered as inactive with the State Bar in 2001.
He is survived by his wife and six children: Ellen, Maryjo, Karen, John, Sean, and Rachel.
Copyright 2009, Metropolitan News Company