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Theresa Doyle

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Theresa B. Doyle

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Prior offices
King County Superior Court Department 13
Successor: Hillary Madsen

Education

Law

Seattle University School of Law


Theresa B. Doyle is a former superior court judge for the King County Superior Court in Washington.[1] Following her election, she joined the court in January 2005.[2] She retired at the end of her term in 2021.[3]

Doyle filed for re-election in 2016 and won automatically because she faced no challengers.

Education

Doyle received her J.D. from Seattle University School of Law.[2]

Career

Doyle was appointed to the Seattle Municipal Court in 1998. She was a mental health court judge from 2003 to 2004, and joined the superior court in January 2005. Other legal experience includes working as an appellate lawyer for the California Public Defender and Washington Appellate Defender Associations, as a trial attorney with The Defender Association, and in private practice.[2]

Awards and associations

  • Member, Washington State Minority and Justice Commission
  • Member, Washington State Interpreter Commission[2]

Elections

2016

See also: Washington local trial court judicial elections, 2016

Washington held general elections for local judicial offices on November 8, 2016. Candidates for district and superior court seats had to file for election by May 20, 2016. Primary elections were held on August 2, 2016, for six seats where more than two candidates filed for election.

Doyle won re-election without appearing on a ballot in 2016 because no challengers emerged by the May 2016 filing deadline.[4] In counties with a population that is greater than 100,000, if only one superior court candidate files for election for a judgeship, that candidate is automatically elected and the county does not hold a general election for the seat. According to the 2010 census, the following counties have a population greater than 100,000:[5]

Noteworthy cases

Kurt Cobain death-scene photos (2015)

In July 2015, Judge Doyle dismissed a case that requested the release of police records and photos of Kurt Cobain's death scene. Richard Lee has spoken out since 1994 about his belief that Cobain's death was not a suicide but a murder involving a secret government plot. Lee filed suit against the City of Seattle for refusing to release the records after he requested them through the Washington Public Records Act.

Doyle dismissed the case on procedural grounds before it went to trial. She ruled that Lee did not give the city enough time to respond before filing a lawsuit. He also failed to deliver the suit to either the mayor, city manager or city clerk. Her ruling prohibited Lee from filing another lawsuit based on the same records request. Regardless, Lee said he planned to refile. "I’ve never heard of a case where an issue of such public importance was dismissed because of such trivial circumstances," he said.[6]

Cobain's widow and daughter spoke out against the release of the photos, which the police had not released for the purpose of the family's privacy.[6]

See also

External links

Footnotes