Web Exclusive: Some judges combine jobs with military service

Whitley Superior Court Judge Douglas Fahl with his wife, Marla, and five granddaughters. (Photo courtesy of the Fahl family)

Earlier this year, two county trial court judges were called to military deployment. 

Whitley Superior Court Judge Douglas Fal and Porter Superior Court Judge Michael Fish serve in the 38th Infantry Division of the Indiana National Guard and are preparing for an overseas mission in the Middle East. 

“Deployments for all National Guardsmen is not necessarily routine or common, but it happens as the needs of the national defense dictates,” Master Sgt. Jeff Lowry with the Public Affairs Office for the Indiana National Guard said. 

Both judges have previously been deployed. In 2016, Lt. Col. Fahl served in  Guantanamo Bay, Cuba. Col. Fish went to the Middle East in 2019 for Operation Spartan Shield.

This time, Fahl’s wife, Marla said, he shouldn’t be gone longer than a year and expects to return late August or early September in 2025. 

“I just admire him so much for his sacrifice and everything that he’s done in the military and in his regular job,” Marla said. 

Marla described Fahl as hardworking and dedicated. 

“I’ve always called him ‘my justice man,’ even before he ever became a judge. Because he’s a rule follower, and he’s very compassionate, and I just never ever doubt or question his choices because he just always wants to do what’s right,” Marla said. 

The couple are childhood sweethearts from Columbia City. 

“He was my first boyfriend, and I was his first girlfriend in the fourth grade. So, we go way back,” Marla said. 

They have four daughters and five granddaughters. Marla said she keeps busy while Fahl is gone. 

“I have a really good support system, and friends and my kids are always asking me to do something,” Marla said. 

While both judges are away, the Indiana Supreme Court has appointed temporary judges to fill in for them.

It’s not unusual for judges to be called away for military service. 

Former Indiana Supreme Court Justice Steven David also experienced stepping away from the bench to serve the country. 

“I came off of active duty, and my obligation required me to serve a couple years in the Army Reserves, and, quite frankly, just fell in love with it and stayed,” David said. “I continued to be a reserve officer through my private practice, through my transition as corporate counsel for Mayflower, which got me to Boone County, and then six years later, I ran for judge in Boone County and was elected Circuit Court judge still in the reserves.”

He was deployed while a Boone County judge and there was concern when he became a finalist for the state’s high court about what would happen if he was mobilized while on the bench. 

He didn’t believe he would be appointed to the high court, but he left the Army anyway And in 2010 he was named an Indiana Supreme Court justice, serving until 2022.

David said everyone’s path with the military is unique. He said he knows of people who work in government and are still active in their military service. 

“I don’t think it’s unusual or anything like that, for someone that serves their country to want to continue in public service, or also be a public servant in their full time job too,” David said. 

He said his military experience helped him during his time on the bench through its leadership and mentorship training. 

“The value of being mentored, the value of mentoring, associating yourself with really good people, learning from people that have a different path, a different perspective, haven’t lived the life that you’ve lived, appreciating the different perspectives, those different lived lives,” David said. 

In 2022, David stepped down from the high court to better support his wife, Executive Director of the Indiana Office of Court Services Catheryne Pully, during her deployment in the Navy. 

“I just did not believe I could do justice to the people of Indiana and adequately support her if I was doing my job and she was doing her thing,” David said. 

In Johnson County, Superior Court Judge Douglas Cummins said his military experience aids him in the court’s newly established veterans court, a specialized criminal court that helps veterans with substance use and mental health disorders get treatment and improve their quality of life.

“They were kind of waiting for me to get in there and get it started,” Cummins said. 

Cummins served as a Russian linguist in the Air Force for 10 years. 

The court opened in January with the intention of handling about 10 cases. It now has a 20-person caseload and there’s talk of moving to 30.  

So far they have had one person graduate from the court-supervised. In another case,  a man has been able to restore visitation with his children, land a job and be promoted. 

Cummins said it’s special seeing the veterans make such great progress.

“Our last graduate,” Cummins recalled, “If you could have seen the way his wife looked at him and how proud she was of him to have worked through all of that, getting them a second chance.”