George L. Stigler
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George L. Stigler was a district judge on the District 1B Court of Iowa. He was originally appointed to the bench as a magistrate for Black Hawk County in March 1978. In 1985, Gov. Terry Branstad (R) elevated Stigler to a district court judgeship. Stigler retired on June 30, 2020.[1] He was the second African-American to serve as a district court judge in the state.[2]
Stigler was retained to the district judge seat in the 1986, 1992, 1998, 2004, 2010, and 2016 general elections.
Biography
Stigler was born in Durant, Miss., and moved to Waterloo with his family in 1957. His father was a tenant sharecropper before the family moved to Iowa. Stigler attended Waterloo Community Schools' Hawthorne Elementary and McKinstry Junior High before graduating from Waterloo East High in 1968.[2]
Stigler earned a bachelor's degree from the University of Northern Iowa and a J.D. from the University of Iowa (1975). He was licensed to practice law in Iowa on June 12, 1975, and was hired as an assistant county attorney for Black Hawk County. Stigler served in the Iowa National Guard for over 38 years. During his service, he reached the rank of colonel, served as the senior judge advocate general (JAG) officer for Iowa, and went to Kosovo on a peacekeeping mission from 2003 to 2004. Stigler also served six years on the Black Hawk County Veteran Affairs Commission.[2][3][4]
Elections
2016
Fifty-nine Iowa District Court judges sought retention in the general election on November 8, 2016.[5]
George L. Stigler was retained in the Iowa District 1B, District Court Judge George L. Stigler Retention Election with 75.10% of the vote.
| Iowa District 1B, District Court Judge George L. Stigler Retention Election, 2016 | ||
|---|---|---|
| Name | Yes votes | |
 George L. Stigler | 75.10% | |
| Source: Iowa Secretary of State, "November 8, 2016, General Election: Judicial," accessed November 9, 2016 | ||
2010
- See also: Iowa judicial elections, 2010
Stigler won retention to his fifth full six-year term as a district court judge for Iowa's District 1B in 2004. Stigler received 41,562 votes in favor of his retention and 17,833 against it in the general election on November 2, 2010.[6]
2004
Stigler won retention to his fourth full six-year term as a district court judge for Iowa's District 1B in 2004. Stigler received 54,435 votes in favor of his retention and 13,907 against it in the general election on November 2, 2004.[7]
1998
Stigler won retention to his third full six-year term as a district court judge for Iowa's District 1B in 1998. Stigler received 39,997 votes in favor of his retention and 8,173 against it in the general election on November 3, 1998.[8]
1992
Stigler won retention to his second full six-year term as a district court judge for Iowa's District 1B in 1992. Stigler received 48,947 votes in favor of his retention and 12,035 against it in the general election on November 3, 1992.[9]
1986
Stigler won retention to his first full six-year term as a district court judge for Iowa's District 1B in 1986. Stigler received 26,332 votes in favor of his retention and 7,106 against it in the general election on November 4, 1986.[10]
Noteworthy events
2000 reprimand
As of September 2, 2016, there was one record of disciplinary orders against Stigler from the Iowa Judicial Branch Office of Professional Regulation. On March 22, 2000, the Iowa Supreme Court reprimanded Stigler over his handling of a divorce case hearing in 1998. The matter went to the high court by request of the Iowa Commission on Judicial Qualifications. The commission had cited Stigler for holding a hearing in the absence of one party's lawyer, "eliciting admissions of domestic abuse from [the husband] by questions from the bench," and considering the application for attorney fees from the divorce case after exhibiting "displeasure" with the husband's attorney. The commission also argued that his "use of a district court subpoena to obtain documents that were the subject of a pending motion to produce before the commission was an act deliberately calculated to circumvent the commission's authority," and the body further described the judge's behavior towards the commission as "disrespectful."[4]
The commission requested that the supreme court reprimand Stigler, while he filed a responses arguing that no discipline was warranted. Stigler argued that the commissions hearings should have been held publicly and that he had been unfairly denied access to the written complaints submitted against him by the lawyer in the case. He had also asked for the commission chairman to recuse himself from the hearing. He later withdrew that request, but restated it on the morning of the commission hearing. He also claimed that the chairman showed animosity towards him during the hearing by "interrupting an offer of proof" and refusing to allow the judge to make opening and closing statements.[4]
Ultimately, the supreme court sided with the commission, finding that Stigler had acted improperly by holding the hearing without one party's attorney and proceeding to "adjudicate custody, visitation, and child support for the pendency of the dissolution action, even though there was no request on file that he do so." The court also stated that Stigler "acted in callous disregard of [the husband]'s rights by calling him to the stand and, through leading questions, obtaining admissions of domestic abuse. No argument based on the ends justifying the means can support that action. It was a blatant denial of [the husband]'s rights." While the court did not find Stigler had been disrespectful to the full commission, it did describe his behavior towards the chairman as "inexcusably insulting."[4]
The court concluded its ruling on the matter by saying:
| “ | We are convinced that the conduct of Judge Stigler that we have condemned was not undertaken to foster his personal well-being nor was it the result of a malicious attitude toward anyone. It was n unfortunate deviation from his normal way of doing things. Judge Stigler has enjoyed throughout his twenty-two-year judicial career the reputation of a conscientious and diligent judge. Notwithstanding these considerations, we agree with the commission's determination that the violations of the Iowa Code of Judicial Conduct that we have found to exist were sufficiently serious to warrant discipline in the form of a reprimand."[11] | ” |
| —Iowa Supreme Court, March 22, 2000[4] | ||
See also
External links
Footnotes
- ↑ The Courier, "UPDATE: Nominations sought to replace judgeship in Waterloo," June 3, 2020
- ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 The Courier, "Waterloo Judge George Stigler was pioneer for blacks on the bench," February 6, 2011
- ↑ Iowa Judicial Branch, "District One Judges and Magistrates," accessed September 2, 2016
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 4.3 4.4 Iowa Judicial Branch Office of Professional Regulation, "Search Lawyers Licensed in Iowa," accessed September 2, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "Judges Standing for Retention November 8, 2016 General Election," accessed September 1, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "2010 Election Results: Official Canvass - Judicial Retention," November 29, 2010
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "2004 Election Results: Official Canvass - Judicial Retention," November 18, 2004
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "1998 General: Official Canvass by County," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "General Election, November 3, 1992, Canvass Summary," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ Iowa Secretary of State, "General Election, November 4, 1986, Canvass Summary," accessed September 6, 2016
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
Federal courts:
Eighth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Northern District of Iowa, Southern District of Iowa • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Northern District of Iowa, Southern District of Iowa
State courts:
Iowa Supreme Court • Iowa Court of Appeals • Iowa district courts
State resources:
Courts in Iowa • Iowa judicial elections • Judicial selection in Iowa
