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Ronald M. George

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Ronald M. George
Ronald M. George gives a speech on March 10, 2009
27th Chief Justice of California
In office
May 1, 1996 – January 2, 2011
Appointed byPete Wilson
Preceded byMalcolm M. Lucas
Succeeded byTani Cantil-Sakauye
Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of California
In office
September 3, 1991 – May 1, 1996
Appointed byPete Wilson
Preceded byAllen Broussard
Succeeded byJanice Rogers Brown
Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal, Second District
In office
August 27, 1987 – September 2, 1991
Appointed byGeorge Deukmejian
Preceded byAllen Broussard
Personal details
Born
Ronald Marc George

(1940-03-11) March 11, 1940 (age 81)
Beverly Hills, California, U.S.
Spouse(s)
Barbara J. Schneiderman
​
​
(m. 1966)​
Children3
Alma materPrinceton University (A.B.)
Stanford Law School (J.D.)

Ronald Marc George (born March 11, 1940) is an American jurist. He previously served as the 27th Chief Justice of California from 1996 to 2011. Governor Pete Wilson appointed George as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court in 1991 and elevated George to Chief Justice in 1996.[1]

Early life and education[]

George grew up in Beverly Hills, the son of a Hungarian immigrant mother and French immigrant father.[2]

George 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 Stanford, George served as a Deputy Attorney General of California from 1965–1972.[1]

As a Deputy Attorney General, he argued before the United States Supreme Court in Chimel v. California (1969) and McGautha v. California (1970). In 1971, he represented 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 in California v. Anderson. 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 Jerry Brown appointed him to the Los Angeles County Superior Court on December 23, 1977; George was elected to a full six-year term on November 7, 1978, and re-elected on November 6, 1984.[1][3]

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 Attorney General's office, and that office successfully convicted Buono on nine of the 10 counts.[3] Thus, it was recognized that the judge, through his action to deny the earlier motion to dismiss, had ultimately prevented a serial killer from going free.[4] Oddly, Los Angeles County District Attorney John Van de Kamp had been elected California Attorney General during the lengthy trial, so he led both the office trying to dismiss the charges and the office that successfully won conviction.[5]

George also presided over the trial of Marvin Gay Sr. for the slaying of Gay's son, the singer Marvin Gaye.[6]

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 Pete Wilson appointed George as an Associate Justice of the California Supreme Court on July 29, 1991, and he was sworn in on September 3.[1] California voters elected him to a full twelve-year term on November 8, 1994.

Wilson appointed George as the 27th Chief Justice of California on March 28, 1996.[1] George was confirmed and sworn into office on May 1, 1996.[1] He was elected to a full twelve-year term on November 3, 1998, with 75.5% percent of the vote.[7][8]

In re Marriage Cases[]

In 2008, Chief Justice George authored the opinion in the Supreme Court's 4–3 ruling in In re Marriage Cases legalizing same-sex marriage in California.[9] Citing the court's 1948 decision legalizing interracial marriages,[10] George's opinion found that sexual orientation is a protected class like race and gender, meaning that attempts to ban same-sex marriage would be subject to strict scrutiny under the Equal Protection Clause of the California Constitution.[11] It was the first state high court in the country to do so.[11]

Voters would overturn the decision less than six months later by passing Proposition 8 in the November 2008 elections.[12] However, Proposition 8 would itself be later overturned by a federal court in Perry v. Schwarzenegger, and thus In Re Marriage Cases was reinstated as valid constitutional law in California.

Potential Supreme Court nominee[]

George was occasionally floated as a candidate for justice of the United States Supreme Court as a conservative acceptable to Democrats, such as when Democratic United States Senator Barbara Boxer suggested George as a potential nominee for the seat on the Court vacated by Sandra Day O'Connor's retirement. Boxer described both George and his fellow California Supreme Court Justice Kathryn Werdegar, as Republicans who "reflect the spirit of Sandra Day O'Connor's tenure—independent and nonideological."[13]

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.[14][15][16][17][18] He was succeeded by Tani Cantil-Sakauye.[19]

In 2013, after his retirement, he published a book of memoirs, Chief: The Quest for Justice in California, about his term on the Supreme Court.[20][21][22]

Personal life[]

On January 30, 1966, George married Barbara J. Schneiderman in Los Angeles. They have three sons: Eric, Andrew, Christopher.[23]

See also[]

References[]

  1. ^ 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.
  2. ^ Dolan, Maura (December 30, 2010). "California Chief Justice Ronald George leaves historic legacy". Los Angeles Times.
  3. ^ a b c d e f g h Dolan, Maura (October 29, 1997). "Fighting for a people's court". Los Angeles Times. p. A1.
  4. ^ "Justice George's legacy". Los Angeles Times. July 16, 2010.
  5. ^ Saunders, Debra J. (March 22, 1998). "True Justice". San Francisco Chronicle. p. 2. Retrieved September 30, 2017.
  6. ^ Ritz, David (2003), Divided Soul: The Life of Marvin Gaye, Da Capo Press, ISBN 9780306811913
  7. ^ "Supreme Court, Statement of Vote - General Election November 3, 1998" (PDF). California Secretary of State. December 12, 1998. p. 21. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
  8. ^ "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.
  9. ^ Egelko, Bob (May 16, 2008). "State's top court strikes down marriage ban". San Francisco Chronicle.
  10. ^ Liptak, Adam (May 17, 2008). "Same-Sex Marriage and Racial Justice Find Common Ground". The New York Times.
  11. ^ a b Liptak, Adam (May 15, 2008). "California Court Affirms Right to Gay Marriage". The New York Times.
  12. ^ Miller, Cheryl (November 6, 2008). "Prop. 8 puts squeeze on Calif. chief justice". The National Law Journal.
  13. ^ Lochhead, Carolyn (July 13, 2005). "Bush asks senators for advice on court pick". San Francisco Chronicle.
  14. ^ Elias, Paul (July 14, 2010). "Calif Chief Justice George stepping down". San Jose Mercury News.
  15. ^ Dolan, Maura (July 14, 2010). "California Chief Justice Ronald George announces he will not run for reelection". Los Angeles Times.
  16. ^ Egelko, Bob (July 14, 2010). "State Chief Justice Ron George to retire". San Francisco Chronicle.
  17. ^ Winter, Michael (July 14, 2010). "Chief justice of California Supreme Court, Ronald George, to retire". USA Today.
  18. ^ Van Oot, Torey (July 14, 2010). "Chief Justice Ronald George to step down". Sacramento Bee.
  19. ^ "New Chief Justice Cantil-Sakauye Takes Office Today" (PDF). Judicial Council of California. January 3, 2011. Retrieved June 14, 2011.
  20. ^ George, Ronald M.; McCreery, Laura (2013). Chief: the quest for justice in California. Berkeley, CA: Berkeley Public Policy Press. ISBN 9780877724445.
  21. ^ Dolan, Maura (November 6, 2013). "Former California chief justice looks back on his days on the bench". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
  22. ^ "Former chief justice offers a behind-the-scenes look at his term". California Bar Journal. December 2013. Retrieved September 20, 2017.
  23. ^ Hager, Philip; Gillam, Jerry (July 30, 1991). "Wilson Names L.A. Justice to High Court". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 30, 2017.

Videos[]

External links[]

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Preceded by Associate Justice of the California Court of Appeal, Second District
August 27, 1987 – September 2, 1991 		Succeeded by
Preceded by Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of California
September 3, 1991 – May 1, 1996 		Succeeded by
Preceded by
Malcolm M. Lucas
 Chief Justice of California
May 1, 1996 – January 2, 2011 		Succeeded by
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