San Diego Criminal Justice Memorial
Honorees
A memorial directory honoring deceased judges, prosecutors, and defense attorneys who advanced criminal justice in San Diego County.
Hon. Charles Nathaniel Andrews
1859-1937
Judge Charles Andrews was born in Wonewoc, Wisconsin in 1859. He studied law at the University of Wisconsin, taught school in Tennessee, and then practiced law in Mankato, Minnesota and was twice elected as County Attorney there. He moved to California in 1907 to practice law. He practiced until his appointment to the bench in 1912. Judge Andrews was one of the legendary figures on the San Diego judicial bench. Appointed by Governor H. Hiram Johnson, he served for 22 years on the Superior Court Bench until 1934. During a large part of the time on the bench, he served as presiding judge. He passed away in July 1937.
He was described by Leland G. Stanford “as a jurist of the finest judicial mind and temperament. He was no sheep, no follower of any legal bellwether.” (Footprints of Justice in San Diego, p. 63) He distinguished himself in both civil and criminal cases. “He didn’t use precedents as authority, but as guides for his own thinking. When a legal argument was concluded he leaned back in his judicial chair, frequently with his back to the courtroom, and searched his own thoughts for the right answer. And usually he found it.” (Id.) He sat by appointment on the appellate court and “his decisions were accepted by the bench and the bar as the final correct analysis. The man was a genius in distinguishing propriety from pedantry.” (Id.)
He stated a man should retire from public life at the age of 75 and make room for a younger person. He resigned at that age after completing 22 years of service on our Superior Court. (Christian Science Monitor, March 4, 1936, p.2). Andrews was noted for his sense of humor, his skill as presiding judge, and for being “a very capable man who seemed to enjoy guiding the younger lawyers, without offending them by his advice.” (Dicta, October 1974).
In the days before portraits of distinguished judges were displayed in the trial courtrooms of the Superior Court – his portrait stood alone in the busiest trial court in our county. A revered icon in the history of the San Diego bench and bar.