LETTER OF RESIGNATION
Date: April 26, 2019
Dear Chief Justice Martha L. Walters,
It is with reluctance that I submit this letter. Although my time as the Presiding Judge in
Washington County has been, for the most part, satisfying and productive during the last four plus years,
over the last few months I have become unsatisfied with the work situation. More importantly, I
believe you and a few judges in Washington County are also not satisfied and have lost confidence in
my ability to run the Washington County Court.
Being a new Chief Justice, who was not the person who appointed me as Presiding Judge, you
deserve to choose whom you believe will fulfill your vision for the Oregon Judicial Department in
Washington County. More importantly, you deserve to have a Presiding judge that you have faith in and
will not feel the need to micro-manage. This resignation will give you the opportunity to hopefully find
that judge.
In addition to resigning as the Presiding Judge, I am also resigning from the Timely Disposition
work group. I have confidence that you will find a great replacement who will be lucky to lead some
great OJD folks. I do hope that you will fully support that group, support the implementation of the
Timely Disposition Standards that you already approved, and, most importantly, support the Presiding
Judges who everyday must make toughs decision to manage the docket and other judges.
This resignation is effective immediately, however, if you wish for me to continue until May 10th
for you to appoint the next Presiding Judge, I will do so. I appreciate that the decision on who should be
the next Presiding Judge is a very important decision which could have long term impact on the
Washington County Court.
Sincerely,

____________________________________
D. Charles Bailey
Washington County Circuit Court Judge