Who is Kwame Rowe? Meet the judge in Ethan Crumbley sentencing
The spotlight is shining on Oakland County Circuit Judge Kwame Rowe's courtroom Friday as families and survivors give heart-wrenching statements during the sentencing hearing for Ethan Crumbley, who killed four students and injured seven others during a shooting inside Oxford High School in 2021.
In September, Rowe determined Crumbley is eligible for a sentence of life without parole after a Miller hearing, a mandatory procedure to help judges decide if juveniles qualify to spend the rest of their lives in prison.
Friday, he thanked each person who offered a victim impact statement, mentioned that he had read statements in advance, keeping a low-key demeanor through the emotional testimony.
Who is Judge Kwame Rowe?
Rowe is married and a father of four children. He served as an assistant prosecutor in Oakland County from 2015 until 2021, according to his profile on the county's website.
It states he is a member of the bar associations in Oakland County and the state of Michigan; the county's SAVE Task Force (Serving Adults who are Vulnerable and/or Elderly), as well as the Association of Black Judges of Michigan and the Michigan Judges Association.
When did Rowe become a judge?
Rowe was appointed to the Oakland County Circuit Court in August 2021 by Gov. Gretchen Whitmer. He was the second African-American male to serve on the 6th Circuit bench, according to his profile on the county's website.
At the time of his appointment, Rowe was a special assistant prosecutor with the trafficking unit, working on felony cases involving human trafficking, complex narcotics and homicide, according to a profile on the Cooley Law School website.
He is the youngest judge to serve on the 6th Circuit Court bench, according to Detroit Legal News.
He was living in Pontiac and served as a volunteer at Pontiac High School at the time of his judicial appointment.
When he was appointed, Rowe said in a news release that the appointment meant a lot to him "because it shows our people of Oakland County that no matter where you're from, how much money you make, or what obstacles you face, anyone can achieve their dreams. Serving the people of Oakland County means to serve the community that made me the man I am today."
His appointment filled a partial term that expired Jan. 1 of this year. Rowe was elected to the Circuit Court bench in November 2022 and will serve the remainder of the term, which ends Jan. 1, 2025.
Detroit native, Pontiac high school grad
Rowe was born in Detroit and attended school in the Detroit and Pontiac school districts. He attended Osborn High School in Detroit, then transferred to Pontiac Northern High School in his sophomore year, graduating from that high school, according to a 2019 profile on Southfield Kappa Foundation's website.
Rowe graduated from James Madison College at Michigan State University in 2011 with a bachelor of arts degree in social relations and policy and a major in political theory and constitutional democracy, according to his profile on the county's website. He earned his law degree from the Thomas M. Cooley Law School in Lansing.
According to the Cooley Law School profile, an experience in 11th grade at Pontiac Northern High School introduced him to his future love of law. He tried to figure out how a fix for a computer that wouldn't work for Auburn Hills Associate Dean Joan Vestrand, who came to talk to students about street law, the profile states.
"Vestrand noticed his dogged attempts and told him she wanted to see him there every Saturday. That was the beginning of Success on Saturdays at Pontiac Northern and the start of Rowe's love affair with the law," states the Cooley Law School profile.
Honors this year
Rowe received a judicial excellence award from the Michigan Defense Trial Counsel in March and the Northern Oakland Branch NAACP H. Wallace Parker Preservation of Justice Award in October, according to posts on his Facebook page.
Contact Christina Hall: chall@freepress.com. Follow her on X, formerly Twitter: @challreporter.
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This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Who is Kwame Rowe? Meet the judge in Ethan Crumbley sentencing
