Timothy M. Green obituary

A letter from Jerry Struck

Remembering Judge Green

By Rhonda Westfall

Timothy Green, one of the most well-respected judges ever to serve on the bench in Clinton County, passed away May 11 in Loveland, Colo. He was 83.

The long-time St. Johns resident and his wife, Alma, moved ‘west’ in 1999, relocating near a daughter and son-in-law, Melanie and Randy Humphrey, when that couple moved to Estes Park, Colo., following Randy’s retirement as St. Johns City Manager.

A veteran of World War II where he was a 1^st lieutenant and served on the staff of General Douglas MacArthur in the Philippines, Judge Green opened a law practice in St. Johns in June 1947. His skill and expertise as a sharp adjudicator earned the respect – and, at times, fear – of his counterparts from that era.

The distinguished looking gentleman defeated incumbent William Morriss in the 1956 election for Clinton County Probate Judge. He took the oath of office in January 1957 and served through 1978.

He began his career as the Circuit Judge for the counties of Clinton and Gratiot in 1979, serving in that capacity until the end of his term of office in January 1993.

While his years on both the probate and circuit court benches provided numerous challenges, a criminal case probably is among the most noteworthy highlights of a prestigious judicial career. Judge Green was the defense attorney in the highly publicized ‘Hengesbach murder trial’ that captivated Clinton County residents in 1958.

The beaten body of Anna Hengesbach was discovered Sept. 8 in a cornfield near her home in Westphalia Township. A stepson, Vincent Hengesbach, who was later charged with the killing, maintained his innocence from the start of the initial investigation until the conclusion of the trial Dec. 23.

Following a forceful closing argument by Green – that included a potential for information on another suspect – the jury deadlocked, six to six, and was dismissed after 30 hours of deliberation, resulting in the dismissal of charges against Hengesbach.

Hengesbach was later vindicated in 1960 when Richard J. Pohl confessed to the slaying and was convicted of manslaughter in the case following a jury trial in 1961.

The tenacity of Judge Green – in a more genteel manner – is recalled in a letter written by another former St. Johns resident, Jerry Struck. As a young married sailor in 1950, home on leave for the birth of a first child, Struck has never forgotten the aid and assistance that Judge Green provided – at that time in his capacity as an attorney.

Along with helping Struck defend himself against an unfair motor vehicle violation, the serviceman recalls an added bonus: "It was all "pro bono," he wrote in a letter from several years ago.

A lover of Ireland and all its beauty, Judge Green was a frequent visitor to that island nation. His family invites friends to the Internment Service at Mt. Rest Cemetery, Thursday, June 10, 2004 at 11:00 AM. An Irish, open-house luncheon celebration will follow at Ye Ol’ Roadhouse, 901 State Street, St. Johns.

A letter from Jerry Struck

"In August of 1950, when I was a young married sailor home on leave for the birth of our first child, I met LCDR Timothy Green, USNR. The circumstances were not good.   My wife was 9 months pregnant so there was little traveling or activity acceptable in her condition.  I had thirty days leave and little money so I went out and got a job in Flint framing the "cracker box" houses of the immediate post war.

The result was that I had to drive to Flint everyday.

One morning as I was driving east on State (M-21) I noticed the local police behind me so I was careful to maintain a proper speed.  When I crossed the town limits I slipped my Ford (1949) with Florida license plates into second gear and accelerated rapidly toward Ovid. (At the time there was not a speed limit on the open road in Michigan)  I looked back in the mirror and saw a red flashing light in back of me.   I continued on and finally as I neared Ovid I slowed down to avoid breaking the speed limit in over and the fact that "Brownie" had a reputation of being kind of tough.  I pulled to the side of the road and let the St. Johns policeman catch up to me.  Although he knew me, he was so wrapped up in the Florida tags (an easy ticket) that he failed to recognize me.  After writing the ticket he asked me to follow him back to town and pay the fine.  At that point I showed him my leave papers and told him that I was aware that I had five days to report to the Justice of the Peace.   This angered him even more. 

Well I went on to work and then on the fourth day I called the Naval Reserve Group in Lansing and asked if there was a Navy lawyer who could advise me.  I was referred to Mr. Green and arranged to meet with him.  I didn't know it at first but he was running for the judgeship against the JP who was going to fine me.  We met in the JP's office and Mr. Green asked how much it would cost me to plead guilty after not being able to get the ticket cancelled.  The JP replied "Plead guilty and find out!" With that Mr. Green demanded a jury trial and got one after a substantial argument about rights of a young service man.

The trial was scheduled for the next morning, and the Sheriff gathered a jury and the trial was held.  It seems that it had been determined that I may have sped just as I crossed that last few feet before I crossed the town line.  Mr. Green spent a considerable amount of time talking about a young sailor with a pregnant wife who was actually working, and not raising hell while on leave.  Then he took on the police officer for being drawn so far out of his jurisdiction for no good reason. 

The arguments ended and the jury went out.  They were gone for about forty minutes, and I began to get a little worried.  The jury came back with a verdict of not guilty.  I recognized one of the men on the jury and asked him why it took so long to come to a verdict, and he told me that it didn't take long to come to a verdict. It just took a long time to eat the doughnuts and coffee they had been served.

I have always wanted Judge Green to know that I did very well in the Navy by rising from a seaman to full commander.  My wife and I   have been married 51 years and have three fine children.  The one who was born in 1950 lives in Colorado Springs, CO.  He has a PhD in Computer Science and is married to a prominent physician.

Thank you,

Jerry Struck