Inslee Appoints Local Attorney to Benton-Franklin Superior Court
Wednesday, Gov. Jay Inslee announced he has appointed a Kennewick attorney to the Benton-Franklin Superior Court. She will be replacing long-time Judge Cameron Mitchell, who announced his retirement in January.
Attorney has practiced since 1994, has handled several high-profile area cases
It will be interesting to see how she rules in cases that will come up before the court because it is no secret that Inslee appoints judges whom he believes are on the same "road" as he is when it comes to judicial, social, and justice issues
Norma Rodriguez operates with the firm Rodriguez, Interiano, Hansen, and Rodgers out of Kennewick and has done so since 1994. A graduate of Gonzaga Law School she is also a past chair of the Washington State Bar Association, and on the Board of Tri-Cities Prep.
She has handled several high-profile local cases in the past, serving as the defense attorney for William McIntosh, who in 2010 was accused of multiple counts of child porn possession. She also worked with the family of a Kennewick man, Christopher Villarreal, who was fatally shot by a Police Officer in 2009, and she represented Chris Pedroza-DeSantiago who in 2017 eventually took a plea bargain for his role in the fatal shooting of a man in the Fiesta Foods parking lot in Pasco in February 2015.
In the Villareal case, she consulted with the family about possibly filing a civil suit against the city. During the investigation, the Officer claimed he shot Villareal after he allegedly tried to use his car to ram the Officer's motorcycle during a traffic stop.
Inslee praises Rodriguez's work
Inslee included this brief statement about her appointment:
Norma is an immensely talented and experienced attorney,” said Inslee. “She is well-known in the Tri-Cities legal community, and she is so highly regarded by her peers, so well respected, that she will have what it takes to command her courtroom from day one.”
It will be interesting to see how she rules in cases that will come up before the court because it is no secret that Inslee appoints judges whom he believes are on the same "road" as he is when it comes to judicial, social, and justice issues. The Thurston County Superior Court is hard evidence of that.
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