State’s Most Senior Judge Set to Retire in October
Jimmy Carter was in the White House when Judge Steven B. Timm first took the bench.
Timm served just over 40 years in Beatrice as a judge on the First Judicial District County Court, including as the court’s presiding judge from 2007-09 and 2015-16.
He will retire on Oct. 31, the Nebraska Judicial Branch said in a news release earlier this week.
Timm was appointed by Nebraska Gov. Charles Thone and has served in Gage County since April 1980, according to a fact sheet by the Beatrice Daily Sun. The First Judicial District spans Gage, Jefferson, Johnson, Nemaha, Pawnee, Richardson, Saline, and Thayer counties. “I have had the opportunity to observe the judicial branch grow, improve, and strive to meet our special obligation to provide ‘Equality Before the Law’ in accordance with the state motto,” Timm said in a letter to Gov. Pete Ricketts about his retirement.
He added, “My thanks go to the court staff who are extraordinarily dedicated and competent; to the attorneys who teach me every day; and, to my friends on the district and county court who are quick to give advice....”
The Nebraska Supreme Court recognized Timm with its Distinguished Judge for Service to the Judiciary honor in 2004 for his leadership on legislative issues and judge education. He has served as a mentor and resource for new county court judges throughout his tenure on the bench, according to the release.
Timm started his legal career in private practice in Lexington after clerking for the Nebraska Attorney General’s Office during his studies at the University of Nebraska College of Law, where he earned his J.D. in 1974. In 1976, he became a deputy county attorney for the Gage County Attorney’s Office in Beatrice.
He was the Gage County Bar Association president in 1977-78 and Nebraska County Judges Association president in 1989-90. He has also been active on the state Supreme Court’s Criminal Instruction Sub-Committee since 2000, Through the Eyes of the Child Initiative since 2006 and State Council of Interstate Compact for Juveniles since 2009.
In 1991, the Nebraska Supreme Court adopted the Uniform Waiver System to promote consistency in fines and processes in traffic and low-level criminal offenses across Nebraska. Timm was one of the original members of the Waiver Fine Committee and continues to serve as its chair, according to the Judicial Branch.
The Judicial Resources Commission will meet to determine whether Timm’s retirement creates a judicial vacancy. If it does, a nominating commission will solicit applications and make its recommendations.
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