Susan Owens (August 19, 1949 – March 28, 2025) was an American lawyer who served as an associate justice of the

Washington Supreme Court The Washington Supreme Court is the highest court in the judiciary of the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. The court is composed of a chief justice and eight associate justices. Members of the court are elected to six-year terms. ...

from 2001 to 2024. On November 7, 2000, she was elected the seventh woman to serve on the court. She joined the court after serving nineteen years as district court judge in Western

Clallam County Clallam County is a List of counties in Washington, county in the U.S. state of Washington (state), Washington. As of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 77,155, with an estimated population of 77,616 in 2023. The cou ...

, where she was the county's senior elected official with five terms. She also served as the

Quileute The Quileute () are a Native American people in western Washington state in the United States, with 808 enrolled citizens in 2018. They are a federally recognized tribe: the ''Quileute Tribe of the Quileute Reservation''. The Quileute people ...

Tribe's chief judge for five years and chief judge of the

Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe The Lower Elwha Klallam Tribe (or Nəxʷsƛ̓áy̓əm ("strong people") in Klallam ) is a federally recognized Native American nation in the Pacific Northwest of the United States. The tribe is part of the larger Klallam culture, part of the Coa ...

for more than six years.

Life and career

Owens was born on August 19, 1949 in

Kinston, North Carolina Kinston is a city in Lenoir County, North Carolina, United States, with a population of 19,900 as of the 2020 United States census, 2020 census. It has been the county seat of Lenoir County since its formation in 1791. Kinston is located in the ...

, where she was raised and graduated from high school. Her father, Frank Owens, was a small town

general practitioner A general practitioner (GP) is a doctor who is a Consultant (medicine), consultant in general practice. GPs have distinct expertise and experience in providing whole person medical care, whilst managing the complexity, uncertainty and risk ass ...

, and her mother, Hazel is a retired law enforcement officer. She attended college at

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

. After graduation in 1971, she attended law school at the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

, receiving her

Juris Doctor A Juris Doctor, Doctor of Jurisprudence, or Doctor of Law (JD) is a graduate-entry professional degree that primarily prepares individuals to practice law. In the United States and the Philippines, it is the only qualifying law degree. Other j ...

in 1975. She was admitted to the Oregon State Bar in 1975, and the Washington State Bar in 1976. Owens died in California on March 28, 2025, at the age of 75.

Notable opinions

Owens signed the majority opinions sanctioning the delegations of very broad policy-setting powers to appointive-board governments. In September 2017, Owens wrote for the majority when, by a vote of 6–3, it upheld the

child pornography Child pornography (also abbreviated as CP, also called child porn or kiddie porn, and child sexual abuse material, known by the acronym CSAM (underscoring that children can not be deemed willing participants under law)), is Eroticism, erotic ma ...

trafficking conviction of a seventeen-year-old boy for

sexting Sexting is sending, receiving, or forwarding sexually explicit messages, photographs, or videos, primarily between mobile phones. It may also include the use of a computer or any digital device. The term was first popularized early in the 21s ...

a picture of himself to an adult woman. In October 2018, Owens concurred when the majority abolished the state's death penalty because they found its racist imposition violated the

Constitution of Washington The Constitution of the State of Washington is the document that describes the structure and function of the government of the U.S. State of Washington. The constitution was adopted as part of Washington Territory's path to statehood in 1889. An ...

References

External links

"Justice Susan Owens"
Washington Courts. Retrieved Jan 21, 2010. 1949 births 2025 deaths 21st-century American judges 21st-century American women judges Duke University alumni Justices of the Washington Supreme Court People from Kinston, North Carolina University of North Carolina School of Law alumni {{Washington-state-judge-stub