A Leschi Passage

We are saddened to report the loss of a Leschi resident this year whose loss is felt far beyond Leschi: Charles Z. Smith. A graduate of the University of Washington Law School, the Judge achieved many “firsts” in his career. He was the first African-American lawyer to clerk at the Washington Supreme Court, as well as the first to be appointed to the King County Prosecutor’s Office. He was chosen by Robert F. Kennedy to serve as a special prosecutor investigating the abuses at the Teamsters’ Pension Fund.

Upon his return to Washington State, he was appointed the first African-American municipal court judge in Seattle, and later became the first to be appointed to the King County Supreme Court. In 1988, Gov. Booth Gardner appointed