Judges set to swap responsibilities soon

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Two local judges will be trading duties in 2011. As of Jan. 2, Judge Sean O’Brien will preside over all felony criminal cases in Davison County. Those cases are currently handled by Judge Tim Bjorkman. Bjorkman will switch to handling civil cases. O’Brien will continue to handle juvenile and abuse and neglect cases, as well as all protection orders and drug and alcohol committals. Bjorkman will handle other civil filings and domestic relations actions. The switch will only affect Davison County.

Both are judges in the First Judicial Circuit, which covers Aurora, Bon Homme, Brule, Buffalo, Charles Mix, Clay, Davison, Douglas, Hanson, Hutchinson, McCook, Turner, Union and Yankton counties.

The switch is nothing unusual, said O’Brien. Former judges Ronald Miller and Lee Anderson would often switch duties between criminal and civil manners.

Bjorkman was elected to replace the retiring Miller in the 2006 general election. O’Brien was appointed in June 2007 by Gov. Mike Rounds to fill the vacancy left by Anderson’s death. For O’Brien, the switch will be a welcome one.

“Sometimes, you can get a little worn down hearing the same type of cases,” O’Brien said. “It’s probably good to have a different perspective.”

O’Brien doesn’t plan to deviate much from the criminal schedule currently used by Bjorkman.

Bjorkman also seems positive about the switch.

“I think the change is good,” Bjorkman said. “It gives the lawyers a change of scenery.”

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