Ronald M. George
Ronald M. George | |
---|---|
California Court of Appeal, Second District | |
In office August 27, 1987 – September 2, 1991 | |
Appointed by | George Deukmejian |
Preceded by | John Arguelles |
Personal details | |
Born | Ronald Marc George March 11, 1940 Beverly Hills, California, U.S. |
Spouse |
Barbara J. Schneiderman
(m. 1966) |
Children | 3 |
Education | JD ) |
Ronald Marc George (born March 11, 1940) is an American jurist. He previously served as the 27th
Early life and education
George grew up in Beverly Hills, the son of a Hungarian immigrant mother and French immigrant father.[2]
George attended the International School in Geneva, Switzerland from 1952 to 1953 and 1955-1956. He graduated from Beverly Hills High School in 1957.[3] He earned an A.B. from Princeton University in 1961 and J.D. from Stanford Law School in 1964.[1][3]
California Deputy Attorney General
After graduating from Stanford, George served as a Deputy Attorney General of California from 1965 to 1972.[1]
As a Deputy Attorney General, he argued before the United States Supreme Court in Chimel v. California (1969), Hill v. California (1971), McGautha v. California (1971), and Aikens v. California (1972), representing California as an amicus curiae in support of the State of Illinois in Kirby v. Illinois.[1]
In 1972, his final year as a Deputy Attorney General, George unsuccessfully argued before the California Supreme Court in People v. Anderson, involving the constitutionality of the death penalty.[4]
He was successful in defending the conviction of Sirhan Sirhan for the assassination of Robert F. Kennedy[1]
Judicial career
Los Angeles Municipal Court
Governor Ronald Reagan appointed George as a Judge of the Los Angeles Municipal Court on April 20, 1972. George was elected to a full six-year term on November 2, 1976.[1][3]
Los Angeles County Superior Court
Governor
As a Superior Court judge, George presided over the trial of Hillside Strangler Angelo Buono in 1981–83.[1][3] In that trial, George made the extremely unusual decision to deny the District Attorney's motion to dismiss all 10 counts of murder. The prosecutors felt their evidence against Buono was so weak that it did not justify even an attempt to win at trial, and trial judges rarely second-guess such decisions.[3]
George reassigned the case to the
California Court of Appeal
Governor George Deukmejian appointed him to the California Second District Court of Appeal on July 23, 1987. George was confirmed and sworn in on August 27, 1987, and was elected to a full twelve-year term on November 6, 1990.[1][3]
Supreme Court of California
Governor
Wilson appointed George as the 27th
Notable Cases
In 1997, Chief Justice George authored the court’s opinion on American Academy of Pediatrics v. Lungren striking down a state statute requiring a minor to obtain parental consent for an abortion as an unconstitutional violation of the state constitutional right of privacy.[9]
In 2008, Chief Justice George authored the opinion in the Supreme Court's 4–3 ruling in
Potential U.S. Supreme Court nominee
George was occasionally floated as a candidate for justice of the
Retirement
On July 14, 2010, Chief Justice George announced he would not seek to be re-elected in 2010 and would therefore retire at the end of his term: January 2, 2011.[15][16][17][18][19] He was succeeded by Tani Cantil-Sakauye.[20]
In 2013, after his retirement, he published a book of memoirs, Chief: The Quest for Justice in California, about his legal and judicial career.[21][22][23]
Personal life
On January 30, 1966, George married Barbara J. Schneiderman in Los Angeles. They have three sons: Eric, Andrew, Christopher as well as three grandchildren, Charlotte, Maya, and Kohl.[24]
George successfully completed the Boston, New York, San Francisco, and Big Sur marathons.[25][26]
Judicial Awards and Recognitions
President of the California Judges Association (1982-83),[27]
American Judicature Society’s Herbert Hawley Award (1997),[28]
St. Thomas More Law Honor Society’s Medallion Award (1997),[29]
William H. Rehnquist Award for Judicial Excellence (2002),[30]
James Madison Freedom of Information Award of the Society of Professional Journalists (2003),[31]
President of the Conference of Chief Justices (2003-2004),[32]
Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Center for State Courts (2003-2004),[33]
American Judicature Society’s Opperman Award for Judicial Excellence (2006),[34]
American Bar Association’s John Marshall Award (2007),[35]
American College of Trial Lawyers’ Samuel Gates Award (2007),[36]
Induction as Fellow of the American Academy of Arts & Sciences (2009),[37] and Executive Order of the California Governor naming an historic two-building complex in San Francisco’s Civic Center, containing judicial, executive, and legislative branch offices, as the Ronald M. George State Office Complex (2010).[38]
Institutional structural reforms promulgated by Chief Justice George include adoption of state funding for all of the trial courts, merger of the three types of trial courts into a single trial court in each county, and the state’s acquiring ownership from the counties of all of the courthouses in the state.[39]
See also
References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l "Chief Justice Ronald M. George". Judicial Council of California. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
- ^ Dolan, Maura (December 30, 2010). "California Chief Justice Ronald George leaves historic legacy". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Dolan, Maura (October 29, 1997). "Fighting for a people's court". Los Angeles Times. p. A1.
- ^ Jenkins, Kirk (2010-12-27). "Retiring Chief Justice Ronald M. George -- First of a Series". The Appellate Strategist. Retrieved 2023-04-11.
- ^ "Justice George's legacy". Los Angeles Times. July 16, 2010.
- ^ Saunders, Debra J. (March 22, 1998). "True Justice". San Francisco Chronicle. p. 2. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- California Secretary of State. December 12, 1998. p. 21. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
- ^ "California State Government - November 3, 1998 General - California Supreme Court". Smart Voter Project of the League of Women Voters. February 16, 1999. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
- ^ "Daily Journal". www.dailyjournal.com. Retrieved 2023-04-11.
- ^ Egelko, Bob (May 16, 2008). "State's top court strikes down marriage ban". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ^ Liptak, Adam (May 17, 2008). "Same-Sex Marriage and Racial Justice Find Common Ground". The New York Times.
- ^ a b Liptak, Adam (May 15, 2008). "California Court Affirms Right to Gay Marriage". The New York Times.
- ^ Miller, Cheryl (November 6, 2008). "Prop. 8 puts squeeze on Calif. chief justice". The National Law Journal.
- ^ Lochhead, Carolyn (July 13, 2005). "Bush asks senators for advice on court pick". San Francisco Chronicle.
- San Jose Mercury News.
- ^ Dolan, Maura (July 14, 2010). "California Chief Justice Ronald George announces he will not run for reelection". Los Angeles Times.
- ^ Egelko, Bob (July 14, 2010). "State Chief Justice Ron George to retire". San Francisco Chronicle.
- ^ Winter, Michael (July 14, 2010). "Chief justice of California Supreme Court, Ronald George, to retire". USA Today.
- Sacramento Bee.
- ^ "New Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye Takes Office Today" (PDF). Judicial Council of California. January 3, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
- ISBN 9780877724445.
- ^ Dolan, Maura (November 6, 2013). "Former California chief justice looks back on his days on the bench". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
- ^ "Former chief justice offers a behind-the-scenes look at his term". California Bar Journal. December 2013. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
- ^ Hager, Philip; Gillam, Jerry (July 30, 1991). "Wilson Names L.A. Justice to High Court". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
- ^ "Profile of California Chief Justice Ronald George". www.metnews.com. Retrieved 2023-04-11.
- ^ "Big Sur International Marathon Results" (PDF). 2023-04-11. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2023-04-11. Retrieved 2023-04-11.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ "Chief Justice Ronald M. George - supreme_court". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
- ^ ABC7. "Civic Center complex renamed for state Chief Justice Ronald George | ABC7 San Francisco | abc7news.com". ABC7 San Francisco. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
{{cite web}}
: CS1 maint: numeric names: authors list (link) - ^ "Chief Justice Speech - October 12, 2002". www.courts.ca.gov. Retrieved 2023-08-04.
Videos
External links
- Official Biography from the State of California
- Opinions authored by Ronald M. George. Courtlistener.com.
- Former Justices. California Court of Appeal, Second District.
- Past & Present Justices. California State Courts. Retrieved July 19, 2017.