Completing an Internship: Multnomah County Circuit Court Judicial Intern 5 points (Sophia Wade, Class of 2028)

 I had the privilege of spending the summer gaining hands-on legal experience as a judicial intern at the Multnomah County Circuit Court. Under the mentorship of the Honorable Judge Melvin Oden-Orr, I assisted with a range of criminal and civil proceedings, from murder trials to class action lawsuits. I worked closely with START Court, a policy-driven specialty court that aims to reduce prison sentences for individuals with drug-related offenses and connect them with rehabilitation resources. START Court was the most memorable part of my summer experience because it challenged my preexisting understanding of what a court hearing “should” look like. Members of the START Court program are required to visit the courthouse once a week or once a month (depending on their stage in the recovery process) to give Judge Oden-Orr updates on their progress. As a result, Judge Oden-Orr is well-acquainted with program participants and the hearings are far more casual and conversational than I expected. Judge Oden-Orr asked each program participant personal questions about their families and recovery journey. START Court gave me hope for the future of our judiciary, because the relationships between Judge Oden-Orr and program participants were clearly built on mutual respect. Not all hearings I observed were like this, but we could use more dynamics like this in the judiciary, especially in criminal cases.