New Chief Criminal Judge Takes Over in Multnomah County Circuit Court

Michael Greenlick assumes a crucial role, responsible for managing day-to-day operations of the county’s criminal court system.

Multnomah County Courthouse (Sam Gehrke)
By Lucas Manfield

As of Jan. 1, Multnomah County Circuit Court has a new chief criminal judge: Michael Greenlick.

Greenlick, who graduated from Lincoln High School and Lewis & Clark Law School prior to becoming a Multnomah County public defender, was appointed to the court in 2013 by Gov. John Kitzhaber. He’s taking over the top spot from Judge Cheryl Albrecht, who held the position for six years and has now hit her term limit.

It’s a crucial role, responsible for managing day-to-day operations of the county’s criminal court system.

As Albrecht noted for a report in this month’s Multnomah Bar Association newsletter, “her term has been very eventful.” The pandemic, which slowed criminal court operations for months, required the “reinvention of criminal court procedures,” the newsletter notes. Meanwhile, a public defense crisis and a statewide overhaul of the pretrial release system have further eroded public confidence that the court system works.

Albrecht will retain oversight of misdemeanors for at least the next year, and will continue her work to “streamline the process with treatment courts and improve timeliness,” the newsletter reports.

District Attorney Mike Schmidt thanked Albrecht for her service. “I have tremendous respect for Judge Greenlick and look forward to working with him in his new role,” he added.

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