PORT TOWNSEND — With Judge Craddock Verser on sick leave for the foreseeable future, Jefferson County Superior Court is functioning smoothly with a combination of visiting judges and court commissioners.
Verser, 62, was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer in July after he was hospitalized for abdominal pains.
Verser has begun chemotherapy treatment in Seattle, and doctors are unsure when he will resume his duties, said his wife, Joyce Verser.
The judge will follow the doctor’s advice about returning to work, she said.
No substantial criminal cases are currently scheduled, Court Administrator Michelle Moore said.
“Everyone has been cooperative about postponing and rescheduling cases, but we don’t want to do that so much so we create a backlog,” she said.
Prosecuting Attorney Scott Rosekrans said the only cases scheduled have to do with the disposition of existing drug cases, which can be handled by a substitute judge.
One such case that was in progress was handled telephonically by Verser this week with no snags, Moore said.
Substitute judges currently scheduled are Pierce County Superior Court Judge Susan Serko, Friday; Court Commissioner Keith Harper, Sept. 9; Skagit County Superior Court Judge Susan Cook, Sept. 16; Court Commissioner Peggy Ann Bierbaum, Sept. 23; and a to-be-determined Kitsap County Superior Court judge Sept. 30.
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Jefferson County Reporter Charlie Bermant can be reached at 360-385-2335 or at charlie.bermant@peninsuladailynews.com.
