FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

SUPREME COURT APPOINTS COMMITTEE TO STUDY CRIMINAL PROCEDURE

LANSING, MI, March 18, 2002 – A newly-created Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure will study Michigan court rules affecting criminal matters, the Michigan Supreme Court announced today.

Speaking for the Court, Chief Justice Maura D. Corrigan said the appointees reflect “diverse viewpoints and experience: prosecutors, defense attorneys, judges, law professors. Each member brings to the committee great expertise in criminal justice issues. Their varied backgrounds will serve the Court well in examining Michigan’s rules of criminal procedure.”

The Court, which made the appointments last week, stated in its order that the committee will “determine whether revisions or new provisions [to current court rules] are warranted due to changes in the law, to clarify existing law, or to improve the delivery of justice.”

The Court charged the committee to report to the Court “at least every six months,” with a final report due in March 2004. Members of the Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure include:

• Hon. Marylin Atkins, Chief Judge, 36th District Court, Detroit

• Hon. Linda S. Hallmark, Chief Judge, Oakland County Probate Court, Pontiac

• Hon. Elizabeth Pollard Hines, Chief Judge, 15th District Court, Ann Arbor

• Hon. Peter D. Houk, Chief Judge, 30th Circuit Court, Lansing

• Hon. Dennis C. Kolenda, Judge, 17th Circuit Court, Grand Rapids

• Hon. Paul L. Maloney, Chief Judge, 2nd Circuit Court, St. Joseph

• Joseph T. Barberi, Joseph T. Barberi, P.C., Mount Pleasant

• Timothy A. Baughman, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, Wayne County, Detroit

• Kenneth R. Chadwell, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Detroit

• Margaret Erdeen Davis, Assistant U.S. Attorney, Detroit

• Stuart J. Dunnings, III, Prosecutor, Ingham County, Lansing

• Neil H. Fink, Neil H. Fink, P.C., Birmingham

• David Griem, Jaffe, Raitt, Heuer & Weiss, P.C., Detroit

• Steven M. Kaplan, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, Macomb County Prosecutor's Office, Mount Clemens

• Eugene R. Milhizer, Associate Professor of Law, Ave Maria School of Law, Ann Arbor

• Stephen J. Murphy III, Attorney, General Motors Legal Staff, Detroit

• John R. Nussbaumer, Associate Dean, Cooley Law School, Lansing

• Joyce F. Todd, Assistant Prosecuting Attorney, Oakland County, Pontiac

• Gary L. Walker, Prosecuting Attorney, Marquette County, Marquette

Judge Kolenda will chair the committee, and Baughman, who heads the Wayne County Prosecutor’s Office appellate division, will act as committee reporter. Kolenda, who also chairs a State Bar of Michigan special committee to revise the Michigan Criminal Code, served as Chief Trial Attorney for the Kent County Office of the Defender before becoming a partner in the law firm of Varnum, Riddering, Schmidt and Howlett. He was first elected to the Kent County Circuit bench in 1988. Kolenda also serves on the Rules Committee of the Michigan Judges Association, and is a frequent lecturer on evidence issues.

– MSC –

Order

01-43

Appointment of the Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure

________________________________________

Elizabeth A. Weaver

Marilyn Kelly

Clifford W. Taylor

Robert P. Young, Jr.

Stephen J. Markman,

Justices

On order of the Court, a Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure is appointed for a two-year term ending March 12, 2004. The committee shall survey relevant Michigan Court Rules and examine proposed amendments to determine whether revisions or new provisions are warranted due to changes in the law, to clarify existing law, or to improve the delivery of justice. The committee shall provide a status report to the Court at least every six months, and a final report at the end of its two-year term.

Effective immediately, the following persons are appointed to the new Committee on the Rules of Criminal Procedure:

Hon. Marylin Atkins

Hon. Linda S. Hallmark

Hon. Elizabeth Pollard Hines

Hon. Peter D. Houk

Hon. Dennis C. Kolenda

Hon. Paul L. Maloney

Joseph T. Barberi

Timothy A. Baughman

Kenneth R. Chadwell

Margaret Erdeen Davis

Stuart J. Dunnings, III

Neil H. Fink

David Griem

Steven M. Kaplan

Eugene R. Milhizer

Stephen J. Murphy, III

John R. Nussbaumer

Joyce F. Todd

Gary L. Walker

Judge Kolenda is appointed to serve as chairperson, and Mr. Baughman is appointed to serve as reporter.