In a courtroom ceremony punctuated by humor and thoughtful remarks on the nature of community justice, District Court Chief Justice Paul C. Dawley swore in the Hon. J. Thomas Kirkman as the First Justice of the Edgartown District Court Thursday, before onlookers that included a panel of distinguished judges, members of the Martha’s Vineyard Bar Association, and Island police officers.
Judge Kirkman will preside over District Court in the 19th century courtroom that is the seat of justice for Dukes County, and hear a wide range of criminal and civil cases that reflect daily life on Martha’s Vineyard. In some cases, he will also be responsible for incarcerating lawbreakers in the nearby Dukes County House of Correction.
On Thursday, justice and its administration in courthouses across Massachusetts was the central theme of a ceremony that began with courtroom gravity. “All rise,” Chief Court Officer John Hanavan said as Chief Justice Paul C. Dawley, Judge Kirkman, and Regional Administrative Judge Kathryn E. Hand took their places behind the oak bench at the head of the courtroom.
Edgartown District Court Clerk Magistrate Liza Williamson, a former prosecutor, provided the introductions of those present and some humor when she remarked that John M. Julian, Associate Justice Edgartown District Court, Thomas S. Barrett, Presiding Justice Nantucket District Court, James M. Sullivan, Justice Taunton District Court, and H. Gregory Williams, retired Presiding Justice Edgartown District Court, were seated just where they belonged: in the jury box, which is also used to seat defendants in district court.
Identifying her staff by name, Ms. Williamson added, “I have to recognize my staff in the District Court’s office. I think we have the nicest, kindest, most empathetic clerk’s office in the state.”
Ms. Williamson also took the opportunity to thank Judge Williams, who retired after 10 years on the Edgartown bench with little fanfare. “He’s a true gentleman and a scholar,” she said. “He meted out justice with an even hand; with empathy towards human frailty, and strength towards those who needed otherwise.”
She also noted his sense of humor and knowledge of rock ’n’ roll trivia.
Gateway to justice
Ms. Williamson said it was important to her, once Judge Williams announced his decision to retire, that his replacement be someone who understood the nature of the Island court.
“I pushed as hard as I could to insure that Judge Kirkman would be our next presiding judge,” she said. “I wanted to be sure that we would have someone who would protect the reputation of the court as being a true community court and gateway to justice for our small, unique community on Martha’s Vineyard.”
Ms. Williamson said she had had an opportunity to watch Judge Kirkman in the courtroom in a variety of situations. “Without fail he treats people with dignity, with respect and kindness,” she said, and his knowledge of criminal and appellate law “is unmatched.”
In her remarks, Judge Hand, a highly respected judge, said she had worked with Judge Kirkman in a number of capacities, and highlighted his academic scholarship, work ethic, “generosity with his legal talents, and his willingness to take on more than his share of challenging cases, with the guarantee that whatever he adjudicated he did so fairly and thoughtfully.”
Judge Hand outlined his résumé. An Air Force veteran and Maryland native, Judge Kirkman graduated from Rutgers Law School in 1978. He moved to the Cape from Chicago in 1981, and worked for Legal Services of Cape Cod and the Islands before going into private practice. From 1993 to 2009, prior to his appointment to the bench, he was the director of the domestic violence prosecution unit for the office of the Cape and Islands District Attorney. For 28 years he has edited and written for the Massachusetts Law Review, and served on numerous state and national panels.
He and his wife Gayle have two adult children, a daughter who lives in Colorado, and a son, a Marine aviator, now stationed in Japan.
In his introductory remarks, Chief Justice Dawley praised the members of the Dukes County courthouse and the “collaboration that makes this an outstanding court.”
He also noted Ms. Williamson’s efforts to bring Judge Kirkman to the Edgartown bench, and her dedication to the community. “Her advocacy for your court has been outstanding,” he said. “There are very few weeks that go by when we don’t hear her advocate for more resources for this court, frankly deserved resources.”
Last year, Edgartown District Court handled approximately 3,000 criminal and civil cases that included mental health and substance-abuse petitions, abuse prevention orders and small claims cases. Speaking to the nature of cases heard at the district court level, Chief Justice Dawley said, “The statistics alone, however, don’t reveal the difficult and complicated matters heard in this courtroom — matters that bear on the safety and security of the community served by the court, and the lives and future of the people who appear in this court.”
For that reason, he said, the selection of first justice at the district court is vitally important to the court and the community. “All of his career and virtually all of his life, Judge Kirkman has been a team player and a leader,” he said. With praise for his integrity and leadership, Chief Justice Dawley said, he was pleased to appoint Judge Kirkman to the post of First Justice.
As his wife of 40 years, Gayle, looked on, Judge Kirkman took the oath of office.
Serving a community
Speaking from the bench for the first time as First Justice of the Edgartown District Court, Judge Kirkman said to laughter, “I don’t know if I just attended a swearing-in or a celebration of my life.”
Judge Kirkman thanked Chief Justice Dawley and Judge Hand for their confidence and support, and said they exemplified all of the qualities that he associated with excellent judges.
Speaking to how he sees his job, Judge Kirkman said it is more than the administration of justice.
“I see myself serving a community and serving individuals that come into this courtroom,” he said. “When I got on the bench, a friend of mine who is a retired judge said to me, ‘Look, the job is simple. People come to you because they are stuck. And it’s your job to unstick them.’ I think it’s really about the people, and if we do that fairly, that is justice. That’s how I see this job.”
Judge Kirkman ended his remarks by repeating the advice the newly appointed First Justice of the Falmouth Court gave him at his swearing-in ceremony 18 years ago; advice, he said, he tries to keep close.
“There are three things a judge needs to remember in order to be a good judge. The first is the good Lord gave us two ears and one mouth so we listen twice as much as we talk. The second is, makes sure your words are soft and sweet because you never know when you are going to have to eat them. And the third is, be kind to everybody down here [in the lobby] as you walk up these stairs, because you’ve got to walk down those stairs again, and they’re going to be waiting for you.”
Correction: An earlier version of this story misspelled Kirkman as Kirkland.