Judge Thaxton Promoted to Superior Court

Judge Robert C. Thaxton, a former San Diego area attorney whom Gov. George Deukmejian made a Municipal Court judge two years ago, was promoted Thursday by the governor to the Superior Court.

Thaxton, 58, will replace former Superior Court Judge Gerald J. Lewis, who was elevated to the 4th District Court of Appeal in October.

Before Deukmejian made him a judge in 1983, Thaxton had been in private practice in the San Diego area for 25 years.

Before that, he had been both a deputy district attorney and an assistant prosecutor for the City of San Diego.

Since 1982, he has made $1,750 in political contributions, including $1,000 to Deukmejian and $500 to the state Republican Party, according to Legi-Tech, an independent data gathering service.

He has also contributed $250 to Assemblyman Larry Stirling (R-San Diego), the report indicates.

Thaxton earned both his undergraduate and his law degrees at Stanford University.

A spokeswoman at the office of county Superior Court Administrator William Pierce said Thursday it had not been determined whether Thaxton would be assigned to the court downtown or to one of the Superior Court’s outlying branches.

Lewis was in the downtown court before his promotion.

Superior Court judges earn $72,763 a year.