Letter: In loving memory of Judge Ann Rutherford

I was saddened to learn of the recent passing of former Butte County Judge the Honorable Ann H. Rutherford, a Chico icon if ever there was one.

Years ago, I contested a parking ticket in Judge Rutherford’s court. I KNEW I’d put money in that meter across from the Bear. The case before mine involved a guy who’d been cited for running a stoplight, which he swore he hadn’t. Rutherford said, “You know how you know that you’ve come to a full stop? You feel it in the small your back. Did you feel it?” He said “No,” and she let the fine stand.

When it was my turn:

SM: “I just know I put a quarter in the meter.”

AR: “How do you know?”

SM: “I felt it in small of my back.”

Everyone in the courtroom cracked up.

AR: “Get outta here,” she said laughing, and dismissed it …

— Steve Metzger, Chico