The Tierra Amarilla Courthouse finally has a new judge, and her name is no surprise: Sheri Raphaelson.
The Española lawyer was appointed Monday by Gov. Bill Richardson to fill the state First Judicial District Court judge position in Tierra Amarilla.
Raphaelson, 44, was the only one of six applicants referred to Richardson by a judicial nominating committee in January, but he sent the committee members back to the drawing board to come up with more nominees.
After a second round of interviews, two Santa Fe civil lawyers, Frank Mathew and Sarah Singleton, were nominated by the committee in addition to Rapahelson.
“(Raphaelson) certainly seems well-qualified,” Mathew said Tuesday. “It was an honor for me to be considered with her during this process.”
Raphaelson did not return calls for comment.
Rio Arriba County has been without a permanent state District Court judge since Judge Timothy Garcia vacated the post in January after being appointed to the state Court of Appeals by Richardson. State District Court Judge Michael Vigil handled the court’s always-busy docket after Garcia’s departure, and in February former state District Court judge for the 8th Judicial District, Peggy Nelson of Taos, took over temporarily, court staff said.
Several civil cases were put on hold entirely until a new judge was seated, according to the First Judicial District Court’s web site.
Raphaelson will be sworn in April 17 and begin orientation and training April 20, court administrator Stephen Pacheco said. Raphaelson will earn $111,631 annually and be up for election in 2010. If elected, she would be up for retention every two years thereafter.
During her 17-year law career, Raphaelson has handled high-profile criminal and civil cases. She won acquittal on second-degree murder charges in 2007 for La Pueblo resident Anthony Romero, who was accused of beating his wife to death, and helped an Española family secure a $221,000 settlement from Española Police in 2006 after that agency arrested a third-grader.
Raphaelson has also served as special master of the Rio Arriba Juvenile Drug Court since Judge Barbara Vigil appointed her to that post in 2004.
Raphaelson, who has maintained a midwifery practice in addition to her legal practice, has said she would scale back that second career if appointed judge.