The first person Samuel Feng called yesterday when the governor’s press release about 13 trial court judge appointments went out was his mother, a 76-year-old FBI language specialist who arrives at work every morning just after 4 a.m. “As a Chinese American, it’s indeed an honor because I was always brought up with filial piety — to honor your mother and father and country,” Feng said this morning of his new post on the San Francisco bench. Because he speaks three dialects of Chinese, he said, he looks forward to helping immigrants navigate the judicial system.
Veteran criminal defense attorney James Collins said he’d started his career as a police officer and loved every minute of it. Being named to the San Francisco bench is a way of coming full circle to public service. “I thought it would be a nice way to end my career,” he said.
Tuesday was Jeffrey Ross’ 10th anniversary at Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman, where he is a partner. He had his own firm, Friedman, Ross & Hersh, for 22 years before that. “I’ve practiced in just about every department in San Francisco Superior Court,” Ross said of his appointment. “I’m awed by the prospect of being on the other side of the bench.”
In Alameda County, new superior court judge appointee Kimberly Briggs, an assistant U.S. attorney, said she was “thrilled and appreciative.” Both her husband (San Francisco’s Chief Assistant D.A. Russell Giuntini) and great-grandmother were born and raised in Alameda County, and Briggs has spent her career as a lawyer there. “To now be a judge in that county means so much to me,” she said. “I will work really hard to be the best judge I can be.”
— Kate Moser
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