Capitol View: November 27, 2007 Archive

Pawlenty appoints GOP state senator to judgeship

Posted at 2:33 PM on November 27, 2007 by Tom Scheck (2 Comments)

Gov. Pawlenty announced this afternoon that he has appointed GOP Sen. Tom Neuville of Northfield to the Third Judicial District trial court bench vacancy in the city of Faribault in Rice County. Neuville has been in the Minnesota Senate since 1990. The governor has not scheduled a special election to replace him. TPT's Mary Lahammer says former GOP Rep. Ray Cox will run for Neuville's seat.

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Pawlenty appoints Appeals Court Judge (and former lawyer) to Supreme Court

Posted at 5:23 PM on November 27, 2007 by Tom Scheck

Governor Pawlenty appointed Chris Dietzen to the Minnesota Supreme Court. Dietzen has served on the Minnesota Court of Appeals since 2004. He also defended Pawlenty's campaign in 2002 when Democrats complained that the Pawlenty campaign improperly worked with the MNGOP on some television ads. MPR, AP the Pi Press have stories.

During the news conference, Pawlenty said Deitzen was an "easy choice" and would be a fair and impartial judge.

The governor added a few comments to his contributors. In a campaign solicitation, Pawlenty also called Dietzen a "strict constructionist." Here's the text of the e-mail:

Dear Friends:

This afternoon I announced my selection of Chris Dietzen to serve on the Minnesota Supreme Court.

Judge Dietzen has a long and distinguished career as both an attorney and as a judge on the Minnesota Court of Appeals. He is a graduate of Gonzaga University, where he also received his law degree. For more than 30 years, he practiced law specializing in civil litigation and has served on the appellate court since 2004.

He has proven himself to be a strict constructionist who follows the rule of law with impartiality. In a time when legislating from the bench has unfortunately become more commonplace, Judge Dietzen has continually used judicial restraint and common sense in his opinions.
His strong experience, innate fairness and honest character will serve him well as the newest member of the Minnesota Supreme Court.

Sincerely,

Tim Pawlenty