Sault Tribe gets a new judge

NEWS RELEASE

SAULT TRIBE OF CHIPPEWA INDIANS

****************************** Fabry sworn in as tribal judge

SAULT STE. MARIE, MI - Sault Tribe member Jocelyn Fabry was sworn in as the chief judge for the Sault Tribal Court by Chairman Joe McCoy in the George K. Nolan Building in Sault Ste. Marie early in the afternoon on Friday, March 5.

The new judge studied at Michigan State University where she graduated cum laude from the Honors College in 2001 and received a Juris Doctor from the University of Colorado School of Law in 2004.

In recent years, she gained experience with a strong background in civil and criminal litigation along with federal law regarding American Indians.

She has extensive knowledge of federal, tribal, state and local court policies and procedures and is licensed to practice in Michigan, the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Michigan and the Sault Tribal Court.

She served as a law clerk and staff attorney for the Ho-Chunk Nation Tribal Court in Wisconsin before taking a position as a tribal attorney for Sault Tribe in 2005.

She became a tribal prosecutor for our tribe in 2005 before a stint as a partner and law office manager of a Sault law firm.

She also served the Sault Tribal Court as a legal aid attorney until accepting her new position.

As chief judge, Fabry is responsible for the administration of justice in the Sault Ste. Marie Chippewa Tribal Court along with the overall organization and administration of the court and all of its programs.

“It is with great pleasure to have Jocelyn Fabry accept the position of chief judge for the Sault Ste. Marie Tribe of Chippewa Indians,” said Kristi Harwood, executive director for Sault Tribe. “Ms. Fabry's past experience working for the Ho-Chunk Nation and within the Sault Tribe and Chippewa County legal systems provides her with the background required for the position. I look forward to working with Jocelyn to enhance our current system.”

Fabry actively contributes to the Sault area community in other ways through involvement with the Chippewa County Bar Association, the Rotary Club, United Way of the Eastern Upper Peninsula and as a member of the Diane Peppler Resource Center board of directors.

“I am deeply humbled by this appointment and the enormous responsibility that comes with it,” Fabry noted. “This position presents an amazing opportunity to impact tribal members in a significant way and a responsibility to have that be a positive impact. I look forward to working with staff in building upon the foundations the judges who came before me have laid and finding new and innovative methods of working with people who find themselves involved with the court. My goal each day will be strive to meet and exceed the expectations the tribe has of me in hearing and deciding the cases before me according to the laws enacted by our tribe.”

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