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New judges were administered their oaths of office at courthouses in Houma and Thibodaux Monday night, with an historic twist.
Juan Pickett, a former assistant district attorney, became the first African American ever to hold a Terrebonne Parish bench, succeeding retiring Judge Timothy Ellender as the presiding judge in Division C of the 32nd Judicial District.
Matthew Hagen was sworn in as the new Houma City Court Judge, replacing retiring Judge Jude Fanguy.
In Lafourche Parish Christopher “Chub” Boudreaux was sworn in as presiding judge for the 17th Judicial District’s Division D and Steve Miller as presiding judge of Division B.
“With great power comes great responsibility,” Boudreaux said after being administered his oath in the Lafourche Parish courthouse. “I do not and I will not take this responsibility lightly. I will do this job to the best of my ability.”
Miller said the Lafourche courts have a tradition of hard-working judges he plans to emulate.
“I can find examples of compassion, a sense of humor, humility and intellectual curiosity, and willingness to work hard and do what is right even if it is unpopular, from the judges I will serve with and those before me,” Miller said.
In the packed Division C courtroom, witnessed by three 1st Circuit Court of Appeals judges as well as the parish’s four veteran judges, who were re-sworn, Pickett took his place on the bench, wearing robes for the very fist time.
After being administered the oath by his predecessor, Pickett addressed the crowd, relating to them his desire to be a judge from a young age, and thanking people who had encouraged him throughout his career.
He began first by thanking God, and then his wife, Bernadette, who is an assistant district attorney.
“She is my support, my backbone, my everything,” said Pickett as his mother, Susie Pickett, watched from a gallery seat, her eyes welling with tears.
A lawsuit is still pending in federal court in Baton Rouge brought by the Terrebonne Parish NAACP, alleging that the local method of electing judges at violates the federal Voting Rights Act.
“The NAACP is happy that Juan Pickett has been sworn in as the first African-American judge in Terrebonne Parish,” said chapter president Jerome Boykin. “However the NAACP is not satisfied with the current at large system which is discriminatory against minority voters. That is the reason why we filed the civil lawsuit, so that voters in an opportunity district can elect the candidate of their choice, whether that candidate is black or white.”
Staff Writer Michael Hotard contributed to this report.
District Judge Juan Pickett (left) is administered the oath of office Monday by his predecessor, Judge Timothy Ellender, at the Terrebonne Parish Courthouse in Houma.
