Chief Justice Daniel E. Winfree of the Alaska Supreme Court announced the re-appointment of Superior Court Judge Terrence P. Haas for the Fourth Judicial District.
Judge Terrance P. Haas was appointed to the superior court in Bethel in 2018. He earned his B.A. in philosophy from Purdue University and his law degree from Roger Williams University. After law school, he clerked for the Rhode Island Supreme Court. He practiced law as a public defender in Bethel for 10 years and as supervisor of a region including the Yukon-Kuskokwim Delta and Bristol Bay.
Judge Haas currently serves as a member of the Child in Need of Aid/Delinquency Rules Committee, ICWA Court Improvement Project Subcommittee, and Alaska’s Children’s Justice Act Task Force. The Fourth Judicial District spans from the Canadian border on the east to the Bering Sea on the west, and includes Fairbanks, Tok, Delta Junction, Galena, Nenana, and Fort Yukon in the east and Bethel, Hooper Bay, Aniak, and Emmonak in the west.
The chief justice annually appoints a presiding judge for each of the four judicial districts. The appointments are for a calendar year, and incumbents are eligible for reappointment. In addition to regular judicial duties, the presiding judge has the administrative responsibility to review the trial court’s operations in the district to assure adherence to statewide court system objectives and policies. The presiding judge works also with the district court administrator to ensure efficient administration of the districts courts including hearing and trial schedules and staffing needs.
Chief Justice Daniel E. Winfree also announced the re-appointment of three other presiding judges: Superior Court Judge Amy Mead for the First Judicial District; Superior Court Judge Paul A. Roetman for the Second Judicial District; and Superior Court Judge William F. Morse for the Third Judicial District.
