By TOMMY REZAC
St. Joseph Post
Outgoing St. Joseph municipal judge John Boeh is retiring from his position after spending 21 years on the bench.
Boeh first took over after Jimmie Nix retired from the position in April 2001. After a long run serving the city, Boeh says he's grateful to both the public and those worked with him on the court.
"I've enjoyed being here," Boeh said. "I thank the public for electing me. I thank my family for supporting me. It's not always easy being the family of a judge. Most of all, I would thank the clerks who have stayed with me. Some of them have been with me for 20 years."
Boeh ran five times in total. He ran unopposed only once in 2006. Theodore "Ted" Elo was elected as the next municipal judge, and he'll be sworn in on April 18th at city hall.
Boeh says municipal court oversees some of the smaller civil and criminal cases, but he says every case he worked was equally important.
"Everybody who came into my court is important," he said. "Every case that comes into my court is important. Court is always some kind of punishment or deterrence so they don't offend again. However, sometimes it's about rehabilitation."
Boeh believes he earned the trust of the public over his long run, and says he strived to treat everyone fairly.
"I hope I did do a good job," he said. "The people who came into court, I'd like to have them feel when they came in court that even if they didn't have a result they liked that I listened to them. Everyone has their story about their situation and what happened."
Boeh will be succeeded by assistant city attorney Theodore "Ted" Elo, who was elected to the position in last week's municipal election. Elo will be sworn in on April 18 at city hall at noon.
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