Washington Gov. Jay Inslee has appointed John Fairgrieve to the Clark County Superior Court, his office announced Wednesday.
Fairgrieve, chief deputy prosecuting attorney, has worked in the Clark County Prosecuting Attorney’s Office for nearly 20 years.
“John is well-respected in the community, and has a long history of commitment to public service in Clark County,” Inslee said in a news release. “I am confident he will serve in this new role with the same dedication.”
Fairgrieve was a reserve in the U.S. Marine Corps, where he served a variety of duties and at multiple command levels, until 2013. He was an active duty Marine from 1983-87. Fairgrieve has a master’s degree in strategic studies from the U.S. Army War College. He earned his bachelor of arts from University of California, Berkeley, and his law degree from the University of Oregon.
Fairgrieve said that in the last decade his colleagues began encouraging him to apply to be a judge.
“I’m deeply honored to have been selected by Governor Inslee,” Fairgrieve said. He added that the other applicants, lawyers Camara Banfield, Denise Lukins, Christopher Ramsay and Bob Vukanovich, would make fine judges.
Fairgrieve led a Clark County Bar Association membership poll, winning the favor of 34.54 percent of respondents. More members considered him exceptionally well-qualified in terms of legal ability and relevant experience, temperament and integrity than any other candidate.
This was the first time in three judicial appointments that Inslee heeded the local bar’s advice.
Clark County Bar Association President Arin Dunn said that he had no comment on Fairgrieve’s appointment, saying it would not be appropriate to favor one candidate over another.
“My goal in this process is to be impartial and provide fair information to voters, the community and the governor’s office,” Dunn said.
Fairgrieve’s term begins next month. He’s starting in family law and will shadow other judges on the bench, as well as attend judicial college. He’s succeeding Judge Barbara Johnson, who’s scheduled to retire at the end of March after serving on the bench since 1987.
