Huff, In re

• Decision Date: 05 June 1958
• Citation: 91 N.W.2d 613,352 Mich. 402
• Parties: In the Matter of the Assignment of Judge Eugene Snow HUFF to serve as Judge in the 3rd Circuit and Judge Timothy C. Quinn to serve as Judge in the 10th Circuit.
• Court: Michigan Supreme Court

Page 613

91 N.W.2d 613

352 Mich. 402

In the Matter of the Assignment of Judge Eugene Snow HUFF to serve as Judge in the 3rd Circuit and Judge Timothy C. Quinn to serve as Judge in the 10th Circuit.

Supreme Court of Michigan.

June 5, 1958.

Robert J. Curry, Saginaw, for defendant Huff.

Before the Entire Bench.

DETHMERS, Chief Justice.

For the first time in Michigan's judicial history, it has become necessary to cite one of her circuit judges before this Court for contumacious disregard and willful and flagrant disobedience of its lawfully entered order. A proper regard for understanding by the bench and bar and the public generally of the authority under which this Court moved and the reasons which impelled it to do so requires their announcement through formal opinion.

On April 28, 1958, the chief justice, the court administrator and the defendant, Circuit Judge Eugene Snow Huff, then presiding judge of the 10th judicial circuit of Michigan, considered together the unsatisfactory condition of the dockets in the 10th circuit and agreed upon specific corrective measures. In conformity therewith, and at the direction of the chief justice, the court administrator, on that date, assigned defendant to serve as judge in the 3rd judicial circuit, commencing May 12, and continuing until June 12, 1958, and assigned Circuit Judge Timothy C. Quinn, of the 40th judicial circuit of Michigan, to serve during the mentioned period, hereinafter referred to as the month, as presiding judge in the 10th circuit. On May 8, 1958, defendant sent the court administrator a letter in which he acknowledged the mentioned agreement and consequent assignments but stated that he would not accept the assignment to the 3rd circuit and intended to remain as presiding judge of the 10th circuit and hear cases there during the month. On May 9, 1958, this Court entered a formal order approving the assignments, directing defendant to serve as judge in the 3rd circuit and Judge Quinn to serve as presiding judge in the 10th circuit in accord therewith, and ordering the assignment clerk of the 10th circuit to assign cases and perform the functions and duties of his office during the month under and at the direction and control of Judge Quinn as acting presiding judge of the 10th circuit. On that date defendant was informed that this Court had so determined.

At the opening of Court on May 12, 1958, Judge Quinn appeared in the court room in the 10th circuit customarily presided over by defendant and declared that he was reporting for service and ready to assume the duties of presiding judge of the 10th circuit for the month. Defendant thereupon made a statement, entered on the record, in open court, that he was continuing as presiding judge of the 10th circuit, that as such he would assign cases for Judge Quinn to hear, and that the assignment clerk would be required to continue to take orders from defendant as presiding judge and not from Judge Quinn.

Being apprised of defendant's refusal to comply with the assignments of the court administrator, this Court on May 12, 1958, caused its mentioned order of May 9 to be served upon defendant, Judge Quinn, and the assignment clerk. Thereupon, and on that same day, defendant announced in open court that he would continue to serve as presiding judge of the 10th circuit during the month. He declined to permit Judge Quinn to serve as such and failed and refused to go and to serve as judge in the 3rd judicial circuit.

Having taken judicial notice of the files in the office of the court administrator and particularly of the mentioned May 8th letter therein from defendant, stating that he declined to accept the assignment to the 3rd circuit, and having been directly informed by Judge Quinn and having taken judicial notice of the occurrences of May 12 in open court in the 10th circuit, namely, defendant's openly announced refusal and failure to comply with the court administrator's assignments and the order of this Court and his willful disobedience thereof, this Court, on that day, on its own motion, entered a show cause order, to which, after issuance but before service on defendant, the affidavit of Judge Quinn was attached stating the above facts constituting defendant's defiance and disobedience of the court administrator's assignments and this Court's May 9th order, after which said order to show cause was, on that same day, served upon defendant and a copy thereof with copy of said affidavit attached delivered to him, requiring him to appear personally before this Court on May 16 to show cause, if any there was, why he should not be adjudged in contempt of this Court and dealt with accordingly for failure to serve as judge in the 3rd circuit and to permit Judge Quinn to serve as presiding judge in the 10th circuit as required by the order of this court.

In response to the order to show cause defendant, on May 16, 1958, appeared before this Court personally and represented by cousnel. At the incoming of Court the motion of the Saginaw County Bar Association to intervene was denied as was defendant's motion for continuance. Defendant thereupon filed and furnished the Court with copies of his answer to the show cause order. Both his motion and answer admitted the service upon him on May 12, 1958, of the May 9th order and the May 12th show cause order with affidavit attached. His answer admitted that he had not complied with the May 9th order but continued to hear matters in the 10th circuit and that he had objected in open court to Judge Quinn's serving as presiding judge therein. Defendant admitted before this Court that he had received the assignment of the court administrator and the May 9th order of this Court, that he knew that thereby he was directed to serve as judge in the 3rd circuit, Judge Quinn was directed to serve during the month as presiding judge in the 10th circuit, and the assignment clerk of the 10th circuit was ordered to perform the functions of his office under the direction and control of Judge Quinn; further, that he, the defendant, in disobedience to the assignment and the order of this Court, failed and refused to serve as judge in the 3rd circuit, continued to sit and hear matters in the 10th circuit and refused in open court to permit Judge Quinn to assume the duties of presiding judge of the 10th circuit. Defendant and his counsel stated before this Court that there were no issues of fact, that the recitals of fact in the order to show cause and attaced affidavit were true and correct, and that the only issues defendant desired to raise in answer to the show cause order were legal challenges to the sufficiency of the proceedings herein and the authority of this Court in the premises. Upon inquiry then made by this Court, defendant personally and through his counsel stated that he still declined to comply with and to obey the May 9th order of this Court to serve as judge in the 3rd circuit.

After hearing duly had before this Court the defendant was on said May 16, 1958, adjudged to be in contempt of this Court, whereupon it was so announced to defendant in open court. He was then reminded by the Court that the arrangement for service by the two judges in the circuits other than their own had been arrived at by agreement voluntarily entered into by him for the avowed purpose of instituting measures designed to correct the unsatisfactory docket situation in the 10th circuit; that in arriving at such agreement, consideration had been given to the dilatory tactics of a few lawyers in the 10th circuit and that it had been concluded that a visiting judge could combat such tactics and effect satisfactory trial schedules with less embarrassment than would be possible for the local judges; that there were approximately 300 cases in the 10th circuit that had been pending for more than two years; that certain reports filed with the court administrator by defendant, as required under Rule 78, stated that there were no cases left undecided by defendant for more than four months, but that such reports did not comport with fact, and that it had been necessary in the past to send visiting judges to the 10th circuit to attend to what would have been defendant's current work so that he might devote himself exclusively to rendering overdue decisions and writing opinions in such undecided cases; that despite the less than State average annual case load per judge in the 10th circuit, the pending cases in the 10th circuit which were more than two years old represented 27% of the total cases there pending, whereas the average state-wide in that respect was 7%; that reports to the court administrator from visiting judges assigned to the 10th circuit and complaints of attorneys therein indicated defendant's fialure to address himself industriously to the work of the court; that such visiting judges reported that the assignment of cases in the 10th circuit was so inefficiently conducted that visiting judges were not kept occupied with hearing of cases while there despite the considerable backlog of cases there existing; that the business of the court in the 10th circuit has been inefficiently administered and that it was for that reason that Judge Quinn was assigned to serve as presiding judge in the interests of instituting more efficient and effective procedures. This Court then offered defendant the opportunity to purge himself of contempt by agreeing to obey the May 9th order of this Court. He requested a recess to consider the matter, after which, this Court having reconvened, the defendant in open court declined to avail himself of such opportunity and stated that he was determined to persist in disobeying the May 9th order of this Court. Defendant, thereupon, was ordered, in consequence thereof, to pay $250 forthwith to the clerk of this Court and to attend the court administrator to receive another assignment and to receive service of another order of this Court directing him to...