By a METNEWS Staff Writer

U.S. District Court Judge Ronald S.W. Lew on Friday attributed his successes as a member of the legal and judicial communities to traditional sources of inspiration that Lew said have stood him in good stead — God, family and country.

"I must give thanks to this country," Lew told more than 300 guests at a dinner toasting him as the Metropolitan News-Enterprise Person of the Year for 1998. "You know this country has been wonderful to me...only in this country could anything so wonderful happen.

The son of Chinese immigrants, Lew said the benefits of living in a free society afforded him the opportunity to make the most of himself. Living in the United States, he said, was a privilege that should not be forgotten.

Lew spoke following presentation of the Person of the Year Award by METNEWS Co-Publisher Jo-Ann W. Grace.

The judge began by telling those who joined in honoring him for his 16-year bench career that he had little to say.

"It's not my style," Lew said. "In this kind of celebration I never liked speeches much myself."

But he said he did want to offer some words of thanks and joked that he would exercise his "Article Three privileges to do so." The U.S. deputy marshals in the back of the room were there to make sure no one left until he was finished speaking, he joked.

Lew expressed gratitude for the many people who turned out to honor him, and he noted that although many were from the legal community, there were people from other walks of life as well. He said his life was richer because of the people he had met from many different fields.

"Take time to find out who your neighbors are," the judge advised.

Los Angeles Municipal Court Presiding Judge Veronica McBeth, in making a presentation to Lew on behalf of her court, recounted her first meeting with Lew 25 years ago when she was a deputy city attorney and he was a defense lawyer.

As a young prosecutor in the master calendar court, McBeth said, she would deal with 100 municipal court cases at a time. There were few female attorneys in criminal practice at the time, and McBeth said defense lawyers would approach her and say, "I'd like to speak to the city attorney."

McBeth would have to repeatedly explain that she was the prosecutor, although she admitted she was tempted sometimes to say, "Why don't you sit down and wait for the city attorney? He'll be here soon."

But she said it was different with Lew. She said he approached her the first time and said, "Excuse me, counsel. I represent Mr. Joe Brown."

Lew's decency and respect moved her so much, McBeth said, that "I wanted to get up, hug him and dismiss that case!"

McBeth said the incident epitomized the kind of decency Lew has always represented.

Presentations were also made to Lew by Lee Edmon, a partner in Dewey, Ballantine, on behalf of the Los Angeles County Bar Association, of which she is president; Thomas E. Holliday, a partner in Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, and U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Barry Russell, for the Federal Bar Association, of which Holliday is president; Los Angeles Superior Court Presiding Judge Victor Chavez on behalf of his court; John J. Collins, a partner in Collins, Collins, Muir & Traver and a member of the State Bar Board of Governors, for the State Bar of California; Los Angeles City Councilman Nate Holden on behalf of the city; and Supervisor Mike Antonovich for Los Angeles County.

Chavez, a former state president of the American Board of Trial Advocates, also delivered commendations on behalf of national ABOTA President Thomas V. Girardi.

Skobin was Lew's first federal court extern.

The 11th annual event was emceed by former Los Angeles County District Attorney Robert H. Philibosian.