PORT ANGELES — Judge Rick Porter, who sparked controversy with his pay-or-appear program but won re-election timeand again, has decided against running for a fifth term.
The Port Angeles-area Clallam County District Court 1 jurist announced Monday that he will not seek another term in officeafter serving nearly 16 years on the bench.
Porter would rather make wine, travel, sail the Mediterranean — whatever else strikes his fancy.
“It’s a good time for it,” he said early Monday afternoon before donning his black robe and heading for the courtroom.
Porter turns 60 at the end of 2018, he said.
His youngest child, Sienna, graduates from high school this year; he and his wife, Dorthe, mark their 25th anniversary nextweek — and he is completing his certification in viticulture from the University of California at Davis.
Porter, an Air Force JAG lawyer — JAG stands for Judge Advocate General’s Corps — also will retire as a lieutenant colonel inthe Air Force reserve, serving in Germany, after 27 years of service.
A member of the Independent Bible Church who feels strongly about his faith, Porter quoted Scripture in announcing hisdeparture from the bench, which he stressed was not his retirement.
“With God’s grace, I simply wish to ‘live under my own vine,’ (1 Kings 4:25),” Porter wrote in his press release.
“I didn’t pick that phrase by accident,” he said in a later interview.
For the last year, Porter has been getting schooled in the fine art of winemaking by vintner DonCorson at Camaraderie Cellars in Port Angeles.
“It’s a nice feeling to finally get to that point in life when you can do what you want to do and not what-you-have-to-dokind of thing.
“I love what I do, but now I’m in a position where I can do some other things where I don’t have to worry about the financialpart of it, which is nice.”
Porter said he may work in vineyard management on Malta, an island country in the Mediterranean Sea, where he also wouldgive vent to his love of sailing.
But being a lawyer again is not in the future.
“I really don’t see myself going back into the law,” Porter said.
“At this point, I’m looking for new adventures, I suppose.
“If I can go to some really great place like Malta or Australia or France and work in a vineyard for a while, I think that wouldbe a lot of fun.
“I may do something entirely different.”
Filing week for the county’s District Court 1 and District Court 2 judge positions is May 14-18. The general election is Nov.6.
The positions will pay $164,313 beginning Sept. 1.
Porter, whose father was in the Army, was born in France, grew up in Joliet, Ill., lived in Roseburg, Ore., and attended theUniversity of Oregon and the University Puget Sound School of Law.
Dorthe, a Danish citizen, is a paraeducator in Port Angeles School District’s elementary behavioral disabilities program.
The couple moved from Italy to Port Angeles in 1998.
He worked for prosecuting attorneys Dave Bruneau and Chris Shea before running in 2002 against and defeating incumbentJudge John Doherty, the current Forks-area District Court 2 judge.
Porter defeated Doherty by 52 percent-48 percent before running unopposed in 2006.
He defeated both Tim Davis and Pam Lindquist in the 2010 primary with 57 percent of the vote, which under state lawallowed him to run unopposed in the 2010 general election, and defeated Cathy Marshall with 58 percent of the vote in 2014.
Porter’s pay-or-appear program has been criticized by his opponents.
The pay-or-appear system requires offenders to pay fines based on their ability to pay, do community service work orexplain to the judge why he or she can’t pay.
If they don’t do any of those things, a $150 bench warrant is issued for their arrest and they can spend a night in jail.
Opponents have criticized it as being unfair to indigent defendants and for clogging the county jail with people arrested onpay-or-appear warrants for not paying fines.
But what he’s done during his tenure has resonated with voters, Porter said.
“I keep winning every time,” he said, adding he’s done so by significant margins.
“People are going to keep taking cheap shots, and that’s really what it amounts to.”
Porter said he has erred as a judge, but would not be specific.
“For the most part, looking back as a whole, I have no regrets whatsoever,” he said.
Porter sounded Monday like a man who loves what he does even though after more than 30,000 cases, after serving whathe said is longer than any other Clallam County District Court judge, his robe-donning days will be ending.
There’s purpose in what he does, more than, say, Superior Court.
“We are dealing with people who are younger and need to be pointed in the right direction,” Porter said.
“You have more opportunities to impact people’s lives in a positive way than in any other court you have.”
________
Senior Staff Writer Paul Gottlieb can be reached at 360-452-2345, ext. 55650, or at pgottlieb@peninsuladailynews.com.
