House Journal: Page 57: Wednesday, January 12, 2000
best occasion to share with you, indeed with the people of Iowa, our assessment of the
state’s justice system.
There are a few matters I should mention before I begin my main remarks.
I want to recognize the newest members of the Iowa Court of Appeals - Judge Daryl
Hecht of Sioux City, Judge John Miller of Burlington and Judge Anuradha
Vaitheswaran of Des Moines; and our two newest chief judges - William Eads of the
Sixth Judicial District and David Hendrickson of the Eighth Judicial District.
You are all invited to join us for refreshments and conversation downstairs in the
courtroom following this address. During the reception, we will take a few minutes to
present our annual Child Advocate of the Year Award to a very deserving couple, foster
parents Pat and Terry Crosley of Audubon. The Crosleys’ unwavering devotion to
dozens of foster children is a shining example of the power of caring for others. Also, we
have set up displays about special court programs and court technology in the hall
outside the courtroom. We hope you’ll spend some time browsing through them and
see some of the things we are doing to better serve the people who use the courts.
Finally, I want to speak to you for a moment, not as Chief Justice, but as Art
McGiverin. The first time I gave this address was in 1988, and this is the last time I
will do so because I will retire later this year. It has been an honor and a personal
privilege to visit with you each year. I want to thank the members of the legislative
staff for their thoughtful attention when making the arrangements for this address;
the members of the General Assembly for the many courtesies you have extended to me
over the years; and the other justices for their ideas, editorial contributions and
support. And I would be remiss if I overlooked the most important thank you of all, to
my wife Joan for sharing this day with me for the past twelve years.
I must confess that earlier, while I was being escorted up the grand staircase, my
mind wandered from the state of the judiciary to our beautiful Capitol building. From
its solid stone foundation, to its elegant decorations and soaring golden dome, many
people have contributed to this masterpiece. Their vision, hard work and commitment,
reflected in this magnificent building, are a source of inspiration for us and for future
generations.
The Judicial Branch at 2000
Like the Capitol, the Iowa Judicial Branch has benefited from the vision, hard work
and commitment of many people, past and present. Visionaries from the past designed
the timeless values upon which it is grounded. Its structure and complex operating
system have been developed over time to meet the needs of the people it serves. And
like the Capitol, the courts’ most significant innovations have taken place in the past
thirty years. For example:
- Together, in the 1970s, we forged a number of changes that streamlined case
processing, modernized court management and eliminated a hodgepodge of
obsolete judgeships.
- At our prompting in the 1980s, you provided for state funding of the court system,
thereby lifting a heavy burden off the backs of property taxpayers and equalizing
local court resources around the state.
© 2000 Cornell College and
League of Women Voters of Iowa
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