Ramsey County Law Library Blog

Former Ramsey County District Judge Edward Cleary will assume the role of Chief Judge of the Minnesota Court of Appeals at the beginning of November. Current Chief Judge Matthew Johnson has announced that he will not seek another term and will conclude his term on this bench at the end of next month.

Edward Cleary has spent his career to date making his legal voice heard. Cleary authored Beyond the Burning Cross (Vintage 1994), telling of his experience as a local practicing lawyer in defending the free speech rights of a cross-burner before the United States Supreme Court, whose actions had violated a St. Paul hate crime ordinance. (This book is available in the Library.) This case, R.A.V. v. City of St. Paul (505 U.S. 377 (1992)), became a subject of in-depth analysis from now-Supreme Court Justice Elena Kagan. After serving as the Director for the Minnesota Office of Lawyers Professional Responsibility, Cleary was appointed to the Ramsey County District Court in 2002. He was a key figure in the 2008 vote recount in the election contest for U.S. Senate between Al Franken and Norm Coleman. After the Wall Street Journal published an editorial attacking the recount’s credibility, Cleary wrote a scathing letter to the editor defending the integrity of Minnesota’s recount process. He was appointed to the Minnesota Court of Appeals in 2009. Earlier this month, Cleary wrote the bold and decisive opinion for the Court in this shocking case earlier this month defending Minnesota’s malicious punishment statute.

Congratulations to soon-to-be Chief Judge Cleary.