Judge John A. Schultheis

DIVISION III, POSITION 1

December 27, 1993–December 31, 2009

Elected; Retired

Judge John Schultheis was born in Colton, Washington and raised on farmland on the Palouse. He served in the U.S. Army and attended Washington State University (then known as Washington State College). While in the Army, Judge Schultheis met a group of lawyers and his interests moved from farming to the law. After returning home from service, Judge Schultheis enrolled in law school and received his law degree from Gonzaga in 1961. After practicing law and working as an adjunct professor at Gonzaga, Judge Schultheis became a Spokane County District Court Judge in 1974. He joined the superior court in 1983 and was elected to Division Three of the Court of Appeals ten years later, in 1993.

A man ahead of his times, Judge Schultheis was a drug law reform advocate. He insisted that prosecutions for low-level drug possession crimes such as marijuana were a pointless waste of resources. Judge Schultheis was known as a compassionate judge who looked out for the little people.

Judge Schultheis left the Court of Appeals in 2009 after reaching mandatory retirement age. He remained active in the community, including service with the Spokane Junior Livestock show. Judge Schultheis was a devoted family man. He was married to his wife Catherine (Kay) for 51 years. The couple had four children: Patrick, Colleen, Elizabeth and Andrew.

Judge Schultheis died in 2013 at age 79.