Duluth attorney Steve Hanke appointed to North Shore bench – Duluth News Tribune
DULUTH — A municipal attorney with extensive experience in criminal, civil and administrative law has been appointed to the North Shore bench.
Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz on Thursday selected Steve Hanke as the next judge for the Lake and Cook county courthouses. The 14-year member of the Duluth City attorney‘s Office will succeed Judge Michael Cuzzo, who retired earlier this month.
“I’m excited about the variety of work,” Hanke told the News Tribune. “There is definitely going to be a wide variety of work in both Cook and Lake County. You’re the only judge and you take whatever comes in.”
Hanke, 43, grew up in southeastern Minnesota, near Winona, and graduated from the University of North Dakota in 2003 and the University of Minnesota Law School in 2006. He worked for a short time as a family law attorney at a Rochester firm and as a law library attorney for Olmsted County before coming to Duluth in 2009.
For the city, Hanke has prosecuted crimes up to gross misdemeanors and specialized in civil litigation involving employment, personal injury and constitutional law. He also has negotiated several dozen collective bargaining agreements with unions and represented the city in arbitration and other grievance proceedings.
Hanke, who serves on the South St. Louis County DWI Court team, said he’s excited to take on the North Shore’s dual-county Substance Use Recovery Court, which provides high-intensive services to defendants struggling with drug and alcohol dependency.
He hopes to expand the program and offer a DWI-specific court, though he noted the region’s remote location can pose some challenges.
“I definitely am concerned about resources,” Hanke said. “With the DWI Court here in Duluth, if we have somebody that needs inpatient treatment, we can get them a bed within 24 hours. If they need to talk with a mental health professional, we can usually get them in within a couple days. And those resources aren’t necessarily available in Lake and Cook County. There’s quite a bit of traveling involved to get to those resources.”
Hanke serves as president of the 11th District Bar Association and has experience as a board member or volunteer for many community organizations, including the Damiano Center, Duluth Area Family YMCA and various youth sports associations. He additionally serves as an adjunct professor in the Human Behavior, Justice and Diversity Department at the University of Wisconsin-Superior.
“I am pleased to announce the appointment of Steve Hanke to the 6th Judicial District,” Walz said in a statement. “His dedication to serving his community and commitment to finding creative solutions to challenging issues makes me confident that he will be an excellent jurist for Lake and Cook counties.”
Hanke said he was interviewed by governor and other officials at the Capitol on Wednesday, receiving a phone call from Walz later that night with the offer. He said he’s already spoken with 6th District Chief Judge Leslie Beiers and hopes to be sworn in before the end of the year.
Cook County attorney Molly Hicken and Grand Marais practitioner Tyson Smith
were other finalists recommended by the Minnesota Commission on Judicial Selection.
“Steve Hanke will be a great addition to the 6th Judicial District bench,” Lt. Gov. Peggy Flanagan said in a statement. “His work with Minnesota’s treatment courts and dedication to restorative justice practices makes him uniquely qualified for this position, and I look forward to seeing how he incorporates that experience into his new role.”
Hanke is married to Two Harbors-area native
Chelsea Helmer
, a fellow attorney and former city official, with whom he owns Grey Rabbit Gardens in Gnesen Township. They live in eastern Duluth.
The 6th District includes 16 judgeships at six courthouses across St. Louis, Carlton, Lake and Cook counties. But with the two North Shore counties having a combined population of roughly just 16,500, one position is split between the Two Harbors and Grand Marais courthouses. Judges must live within the district and appear on the ballot in all four counties.
Tom Olsen covers crime and courts and the 8th Congressional District for the Duluth News Tribune since 2013. He is a graduate of the University of Minnesota Duluth and a lifelong resident of the city. Readers can contact Olsen at 218-723-5333 or tolsen@duluthnews.com.
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