OKBR Director Tom Van Woerdan said in his February 13, 1990 Certified Statement, that; "I can produce, if required, at a minimum 100 different people, parents, local officials, Kiwanians, judges, caseworkers, who would testify that the O.K. Boys Ranch ranks high in the state in terms of the services it provides for the boys who, come there. The staff I have acquired over the years, I am extremely proud of. They do work far and above that require by the numerous WACS, contract provisions and manuals of the State of Washington. These boys are well cared for and, in fact, even though it is a cliche', loved by all members of our staff. If the State of Washington were operating its own group home, it would do well to provide as good service as we do."

Thurston County Superior Court Judges Page

The Seven Thurston County Superior Court Judges

Brief Biographies

Judge Daniel J. Berschauer

Judge Daniel J. Berschauer was born and raised in Olympia and graduated from Olympia High School. He attended the University of Washington and graduated from its School of Business. He later attended the Graduate School of Business and graduated from the School of Law at the University of Washington. He served as an officer in the United States Army Reserve. He is a graduate of the National Judicial College. Judge Berschauer has been a deputy prosecuting attorney, Court Commissioner for Thurston County District Court, Thurston County District Court Judge from 1979-1984 and since 1984, has been a Thurston County Superior Court Judge. He is currently the senior judge of that court.

Judge Berschauer has two adult children. He has been active in numerous professional and civic organizations. He has served as chair of the Criminal Law and Rules Committee of the Superior Court Judges' Association and served a two-year term as Secretary of that Association and member of the Board of Trustees.

Judge Paula Casey

Thurston County Superior Court Judge Paula Casey was first elected to the bench in 1984. Before that, she was the Thurston County Court Commissioner for juvenile, family law and involuntary commitment issues.

Judge Casey was an attorney in private practice in Olympia from 1976 - 1982. From 1973-1975 she practiced law as a staff attorney for Micronesian Legal Services Corporation on the island of Truk in the East Caroline Islands. To this day, she credits her experience in Truk as that which has most impacted who she is in the courtroom.

Judge Casey earned her undergraduate degree in mathematics and political science from Willamette University in 1969, and graduated from Willamette University College of Law in 1972 as the only woman in her class. Her first job after graduation was as law clerk to Oregon Supreme Court Justice Edward Howell.

Judge Casey is a founder and present board member of the Thurston County Dispute Resolution Center. She has worked to make community resources available to solve conflicts and to develop court-annexed alternative dispute resolution resources. After 12 years on the bench, Judge Casey sees how lawsuits impact the justice system and the people involved.

She believes the adversary system can be unforgiving in terms of its effects on the well-being of litigants. Those who must live together as neighbors, parent common children, or otherwise work together long after the dispute has been resolved are often better served without trial.

Others may also achieve more timely and less costly solutions to legal problems with trial alternatives.

Paula Casey is married to Nick Handy who is the Executive Director of the Port of Olympia. They have two teenagers. Tennis is among the family hobbies.

Judge Richard A. Strophy

Judge Richard A. (Rick) Strophy was born and raised in Seattle. He graduated from Seattle University and in 1970 achieved a Doctor of Law degree at Gonzaga School of Law. He then served as an Assistant Attorney General for the State of Washington 1976-77. For the next nine years he served as Chief Criminal Prosecuting Attorney for Thurston County followed by two years as Chief Civil Deputy. In 1982 he was elected to the Thurston County District Court bench. In 1984, Judge Strophy was elected to the Thurston County Superior Court bench and is currently in his third term. He served as the court's Administrative Judge for six years and chairperson for the State Committee on Trial Court Performance Standards for three years. Currently, Judge Strophy is Chair of the Thurston County Law and Justice Council and also serves as the Washington State Superior Court Judges' Association representative to the Washington State Law and Justice Advisory Council. As past president of the Olympia area YMCA Board of Directors and current board member, he participates in numerous charitable and civic activities and continues to serve in the Washington Army National Guard with the rank of Colonel as its State Judge Advocate and its only certified military judge.

Judge Strophy has three adult sons. His oldest, Rich, is a technical writer for Boeing; his middle son, Matt, is pursuing a teaching career and coaches boy's basketball at the high school level; and Paul, his youngest, is an account representative for UNISEARCH, Inc. Judge Strophy and his three sons enjoy playing men's slow-pitch softball together and are active boaters and sports enthusiasts. The judge has recently taken up touring the region aboard his Goldwing motorcycle.

Judge Wm. Thomas McPhee

Judge Richard D. Hicks

Judge Richard D. Hicks or "Cork" as his friends call him is a fifth generation county resident, was raised in Olympia, and graduated from Olympia High School. He graduated from the University of Washington in 1965, worked for a year, and then attended the University of Washington School of Law where he received his Juris Doctor Degree in 1969. Judge Hicks graduated from National Judicial College in 1992. Judge Hicks practiced in a Seattle labor law firm from 1970 to 1972, was an Assistant Attorney General specializing in tax cases from 1972 to 1977, attended and graduated from an international multidisciplinary study program from 1977 to 1978, started and operated his own law firm from 1978 to 1985, was then appointed Thurston County’s Juvenile and Family Law Commissioner from 1985 to 1992 and in 1992 was elected to the Superior Court Bench. He was re-elected in 1996. He was Vice-Chair of the State Superior Court Judges Family and Juvenile Law Committee from 1991 to 1993 and was a member of the Legislature’s Juvenile Disposition Standards Commission in 1993 and 1994. From 1993 to 1996 he was Chair of the State Superior Court Judges Criminal Law & Rules Committee. In 1996 he was the judges’ association representative to the Governor's Task Force reviewing the Indeterminate Sentence Review Board. He is on the steering committee of the WSBA Criminal Justice Institute. Judge Hicks has recently published two articles: The Power Removal And Revision of Superior Court Commissioners, Volume 32:1, Gonzaga Law Review, February 1997, and Using the Enneagram to Understand the Transformation of a Controversy in the Legal System, The UniS Institute Journal, October 1996.

Cork is married to Dottie Hicks, a school teacher, active in Junior League of Olympia, and they have two daughters, Emily and Rachael, both who attend Capital High School. Both girls are distance runners on their school’s track or cross-country teams. The Hicks live on the family’s oyster farm on Eld Inlet (now operated by a brother) and often enjoy boating during the summer. His adult daughter Allison, a Master’s level chemical engineer, is married and living in San Francisco with her husband Craig McDonald, also a Master’s level chemical engineer, and they have two children, Caitlin and John.

Judge Christine A. Pomeroy

Judge Christine A. Pomeroy received her B.A. in Political Science from Washington State University in 1974. She received her J.D. from the University of Puget Sound School of Law in 1977. In 1977 she was a legal intern with the Pierce County Department of Assigned Counsel after which she joined the Thurston County Prosecuting Attorney's Office where she spent seven years in the criminal trial section handling numerous felony prosecutions and maintaining an appellate practice. In 1985, she was appointed to the Olympia Municipal Court and worked part time in private practice with the law firm of Foster, Foster and Schaller. In 1992, she was elected to the Superior Court Bench.

Judge Pomeroy is a graduate of the National Judicial College and has been a faculty instructor for Washington State Judicial Orientation for New Judges. She has been active in the Washington State District and Municipal Court Judges' Association and the Superior Court Judges' Association. She has sat as an active member of the education committee for both associations and the conference chair for both associations. Her other affiliations include the Superior Court Judges' Ethics Committee and District and Municipal Court Judges' Court Improvement Committee. She was a founding member of the DWI Victim Impact Panel for the City of Olympia. She is currently on the statewide board for the YMCA Mock Trial Competitions for high school students and for the last two years has been the district convener for the high school students in her district. She is on the Board of Trustees of Behavioral Health Resources (formerly Community Mental Health). Previously Judge Pomeroy has been a fee arbitrator for the Washington State Bar Association and an arbitrator for Thurston County Superior Court. Judge Pomeroy and her husband Leo are avid skiers and enjoy all outdoor activities.

Judge Gary R. Tabor

Below is an e-mail I received from a former Olympia, Washington resident.

From: ~~~~~~~~@aol.com
To: Louis Bloom manaco@whidbey.net
Sent: Wednesday, July 28, 1999 11:34 AM
Subject: OKBR
Just came across your pages and felt the urge to respond... In the early 80's (81-83) I was at the OKBR frequently as a young kid walking to/from school, I became friends with some of the boys. At one point a small boy confided to me that he was being raped by another boy in the home. The abusing boy talked about it openly!
Days later I walked the victim to OPD where we both gave statements. Later that evening I began to receive these incredibly threatening phone calls from a woman employee of the ranch who's name I believe was Paulette at my home. She kept calling over and over screaming at me calling me names. It was horrible. I thought I was helping someone. Nothing came of it. Then all these years later, it all comes out ... one of the boys that I had known there left as a young adult and still couldn't get it together, he eventually killed himself. As an adult now I don't often think back to those times but it still saddens me. All those boys that needed a safe nurturing place to be, and how many of them were better off for having been taken there? It's not about money. It cost these boys their lives, their souls, their trust. Those people who knew, who didn't care, they should feel such shame. Just my opinion.

From: louis a bloom manaco@whidbey.net
To: ~~~~~~~@aol.com
Sent: Wednesday, July 28, 1999 7:30 PM
Subject: Re: OKBR
thanks for your e-mail. from what i've read, dshs, the olympia police department, and other "authorities" didn't consider child on child rape to be against the law. it was considered "normal experimentation". The "paulette" you mention, may have been Collette Queener who was an assistant director at the OKBR. Collette, OKBR Director Tom Van Woerdan, and OKBR counselor Laura Rambo Russell were ineptly charged by Wa. St. with "criminal mistreatment for failing to stop abuse". The charges were dismissed by Thurston County Judge Daniel Berschauer on technicalities. The lawyer who represented Collette Queener said, (Nov. 14, 1996 Olympian), that it was a "witch hunt", and that " a more innocent person (than Queener) you could not have for a client. She's an ex-nun ..... I don't see how you could view her in an evil or negative light."
I congratulate you for doing the right thing, when all those adults looked the other way. I repeat on most pages that the " OKBR has cost the Washington State taxpayers over $35 million dollars (so far)", because I think most people don't care about the kids involved, but they may care that it has cost them (taxpayers) money.
louis bloom

manaco@whidbey.net