SANTA CRUZ >> Appointed judge Kim E. Baskett will join the Santa Cruz County Superior Court bench next week as the system’s 12th justice.
After a year-and-a-half process to fill the newly created position, Gov. Jerry Brown appointed on Monday Baskett, a long-time Santa Cruz court commissioner, to a vacant judgeship position first authorized in November 2015. Baskett’s commissioner position will not be filled, and her prior minor violation cases will be parceled out among sitting judges.
Presiding Judge Denine Guy said in a release issued Monday that Baskett excels in handling some of the area’s most challenged citizens through their court cases.
“Our court is the beneficiary of one of the hardest working bench officers I’ve met,” Guy wrote. “Her expertise is indispensable as we move forward to reorganize our misdemeanor and lower offense courts.”
Baskett’s court assignment is not yet clear, but will likely involve misdemeanor cases, Baskett said Monday. She said she was looking forward to being able to preside over jury trials in the future.
“Our court was designated one of the courts who merited an extra judge position, due to the volume of filings that we get,” Baskett said. “We are very excited to be able to offer increased access to justice for all misdemeanors, because we’re going to have a full misdemeanor court in addition to the two that we already have.”
Baskett, 64, of Watsonville, has handled all of the system’s infraction and traffic cases for 14 years and has filled in as needed for judges in the misdemeanor courts for more than a year. Baskett, a Democrat, will hold the $191,612-a-year position until next year’s election, when she would have to run to maintain the job.
Prior to her judicial work, Baskett worked as a Santa Cruz County Counsel’s Office assistant county counsel from 1994 to 2003. She earned a law degree from the Monterey College of Law and a Bachelor of Arts degree from San Jose State University.
