Jenny Lancour | Daily Press Judge Stephen Davis, pictured above in Delta County Circuit Court, is retiring Jan. 1 after serving 23 years on the bench. Prior to his judgeship, he was a lawyer for 20 years in Escanaba.

ESCANABA — Delta County Circuit Court Judge Stephen Davis is retiring from the bench where he has served 23 years “righting wrongs” in thousands of court cases ranging from high-profile murders to simple civil lawsuits.

“I’ve handled 15,000 cases including over 10,000 civil cases and close to 5,000 criminal cases,” Davis said, recently reflecting on his law career that actually spans more than four decades including his 20 years in private practice.

Davis, 69, officially retires on Jan. 1 and will be handing over the judge’s gavel to his successor, John Economopoulos, during a swearing-in ceremony in the 47th Judicial Circuit Court today.

Economopoulos ran unopposed for the six-year term in the Nov. 8 election.

“John will be in good hands here,” commented Davis, complimenting his staff.

As head of circuit court, Davis also oversees the Friend of the Court Office and has some responsibility over the county clerk’s office, he explained.

“They’re incredible staff who have done so much with so few resources. They’re efficient and friendly and provide high quality public service,” said Davis, who also serves as chief judge over the district and probate court judges.

“My career has allowed me the opportunity to work with really bright people,” he added, citing past and present judges, staff, and lawyers.

Though he first found the job to be “incredibly daunting” because he didn’t realize how much work was involved, he also found the judgeship to be an “extremely rewarding job intellectually.”

Davis began working as circuit court judge on March 7, 1994. One month later, the first of three major murder cases in his career began when Connie Pendleton was accused of killing her newborn baby. She was convicted after pleading guilty to second-degree murder.

Two memorable homicide cases included the conviction of Hans Nelson who shot his cousin in the late 1990s and the conviction of Kallay Batchelor who fatally stabbed his wife in 2014.

“Those three obviously stand out,” Davis said looking back on court cases he has presided over during the past 23 years.

“Every domestic violence case should be treated as a murder in progress,” Davis recalled, commenting during domestic violence cases which made their way to the criminal court.

“The most difficult cases involve sentencing a young person to prison,” he said, noting, “Sending anyone to prison is never easy.”

Reflecting on the past two decades, drunk driving cases were prominent in the earlier years compared to the drug-related crimes that have dominated in the last 10 years, though both involve substance abuse, Davis said.

Divorce cases have always been prevalent and represent half the cases on the docket while criminal cases equal about 30 percent of the court schedule, he said.

In each case which a judge decides on — or instructs a jury about — the first step in the process is to determine the facts then apply the laws to these facts to come up with a decision, explained Davis.

“The law also gives judges discretion. Almost every case involves discretion in possible penalties or remedies,” he said.

“Judges are given a lot of discretion but not unlimited discretion,” Davis added, explaining decisions and sentencings are based on court rules and state laws.

Court cases can also involve a judge interpreting slightly ambiguous statutes. That’s when the judge needs to determine the “legislative intent,” he said.

In the end, each court decision comes down to “looking for the truth” and “righting a wrong in the fairest possible way,” stated Davis.

When asked what kind of judge he would like people to remember him as, he replied, “I want to be remembered as being fair with giving everyone a full chance to be heard… And I’d like to be known as being patient.”

His advice to any new judge is to be patient and diligent as stated in the Code of Judicial Conduct.

“There are a lot of sign posts along the way. You have to know where the sign posts are and find them and apply them,” he added.

For Davis, the signs ahead are telling him it’s time to retire and spend more time with his wife and family, which includes three grandsons.

He and his wife, Carol, are parents to a son, Christopher and his two sons, of Escanaba, and a daughter, Sarah, who lives in Texas with her husband and their son.

Davis also plans to join the local historical society and continue cycling. For years, he and friends have made an annual biking trip to St. Ignace in July. As an avid cyclist, he pedals 1,500 to 1,700 miles a year, often riding his bike to and from the courthouse.

Davis is a native of Escanaba where he graduated from high school in 1965 and attended Bay de Noc Community College for two years. After earning an undergraduate degree in history and English from Western Michigan University, he graduated from law school at Valparaiso University in 1973 and was admitted to the Bar that same year. He has served his entire law career in Escanaba.

On Dec. 29, Davis will be hosting a retirement reception at the courthouse from 4 to 6 p.m. The public is invited to attend.

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Jenny Lancour, (906) 786-2021, ext. 143, jlancour@dailypress.net