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Mike Penders Ceremony September 29, 2023 Remarks

Friday, September 29, 2023

MIKE PENDERS CEREMONY
SEPTEMBER 29, 2023
REMARKS
BY
THE HON. JOHN A. WOODCOCK, JR.
UNITED STATES DISTRICT JUDGE

Viewed from 10,000 feet, the federal criminal justice system is complex, even Byzantine. From arrest through appeal, the system assigns different roles to different people, but I have often thought that there is no important role throughout the process than the role of United States Probation Officer. From shortly after an arrest through the final day of supervised release, the one constant for a defendant is not the prosecutor, not the defense lawyer, not the investigating or arresting officer, not the judges, not the corrections officers, it is the probation officer. And so the success of the justice system uniquely depends upon the excellence of its probation officers.

It is a hard job to do well. To be a good probation officer calls on an array of skills. A good probation officer must be a lawyer, a social worker, a law enforcement officer, a clinical psychologist, a labor market specialist, a sex offender treatment specialist, an addiction expert, a private investigator, a firearms expert, an interrogator, a motivator, a lie detector, a father confessor, a mother superior, a guidelines guru, an IT wonk, a marriage, relationship, and family counselor, a judge before the judge, the list goes on. Often a probation officer must play all these roles at the same time at different points in the same conversation. We are blessed in the District of Maine to have a cadre of probation officers who bring these qualities to their daily jobs and routinely do extraordinary work. On behalf of the judges of this district, I want to take this opportunity to thank each probation officer in this courtroom for the remarkable work they do for us and for the people we all serve.

As the resident judge in Bangor when Mike first came to the District of Maine, I have known Mike since he arrived in Maine, and I have taken a measure of the man. What I have come to know about Mike Penders is that he is not a good probation officer, he is an outstanding probation officer, possessing an unusual combination of IQ and EQ. Mike is gifted with unusual insight into the line between the fallible and the nefarious, between the need to encourage some conduct and the duty to discourage other conduct, between when to pull and when to push, when to show compassion and when be tough.

But Mike has something more, something harder to define. Mike is a leader. Mike leads by example, by soft and hard diplomacy, and by being not just smart, but people smart. And more recently, I would add one that is also evident: personal courage. Mike somehow combines all the talents essential for a probation officer, yet among his other attributes, the one that stands apart is that Mike has an unusual dedication to mission. I sense that Mike’s belief in what the Probation Office can befor society in changing lives and fostering communities runs deep. It is in his bones. And because he believes in the mission and has a vision for the possible, he cares. He cares about each person touched by the system, the defendant, the defendant’s family, the victims, and the impact of decisions on our society writ large, the one that Mike’s
two children and all our children grow up in. And more than anything Mike cares about his colleagues, and I am sure that each Probation Officer from the District of Maine knows exactly what I am saying is true.

Being Chief of the Probation Office for the District of Maine is a daunting task in challenging times. Fortunately, he will have help for the probation office in this District is well known for its excellence and has a history of outstanding leadership providing Mike with a proud legacy and a foundation of excellence. In moving from Chief Kim Rieger to Chief Mike Penders, the Office is going from strength to strength. Chief Kim Rieger carries Mike’s personal qualities and dedication to mission, and Chief Kim Rieger will be a hard act to follow.

But if anyone can rise to the challenge and meet the moment, it is Mike Penders. Mike, this is your moment. On behalf of all the judges, congratulations, thank you, and good luck.