A First! Kudos to a Judge!
Judge Kirk C. Wintermute
Well, this is a first. I talk a lot of shit about judges, because for 99% of the time, they are social deviants that hide behind the cloak of judicial immunity and do their absolute best to deny disabled individuals equal access to court.
But this judge, Judge Kirk C. Wintermute, who usually sits in Clatsop County Oregon, has broken the mold.
On March 5, I had a hearing with Judge Wintermute, and here are the things that he did right.
He went into private session to discuss ADA access for my client.
He excluded the opposition from the private session, thus preserving the privacy for my client under 28 C.F.R. §35.160(b)(2).
He was patient, courteous, and upheld the integrity of his office by going through these accommodations slowly, and even allowed us an off-screen break during this discussion to navigate hurdles that could not be overcome by the OR court system standard operation.
He basically granted all but one (which was, at least on this date, unachievable) of the accommodations requested.
He knowingly allowed me to record the proceedings.
He allowed me to be able to ask for a break for my client.
If there’s anything that takes me by surprise, it is when a judge actually wants to grant equal access to a disabled client, without a whole lot of posturing. I’m accustomed to judges posturing, and I give it right back to them, but in this case, there was absolutely no need for it.
I don’t want to keep gushing on and on, but this judge was a class act.
Fairness demands that I give this judge his accolades for this. It doesn’t fix the system-wide problem of non-compliance, but in this case, it was a breath of fresh air.
Thank you Judge Wintermute.
P.D., Jay V. Shore, Certified ADA Advocate
Great to hear!!!
How encouraging!! Thank you for sharing the successes as well as the failures.