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OUR COMMUNITY

24 | MAY 11 • 2023 

mation so that the court can 
make good decisions about 
setting a bond so we can pro-
tect the public while a case is 
pending.
“In addition,
” Judge Parker 
said, “the Council provides 
ongoing education about the 
dynamics of domestic violence 
so that we can make more edu-
cated decisions when the cases 
come in front of us for sentenc-
ing or other decision-making 
along the way.
“Each individual case is an 
opportunity to educate people 
about the dynamics of domes-
tic violence and make sure 
we can put in place a system 
where there’s accountability 
and make sure that this isn’t an 
ongoing issue.”
Domestic violence isn’t Judge 
Parker’s only priority. She 
began the 47th District Court 
Sobriety Court in 2005 to target 
substance abuse and addiction 
through intervention, treatment 
and offender accountability. 
This program serves to protect 
the community and reduce 
crime. Her efforts earned her 
the 2014 Drug Court Hero 
Award from the Michigan 
Association of Treatment Court 
Professionals. 
In addition, Judge Parker 
is a past-president of the 

Oakland County District 
Judges Association, has served 
on the board of the Oakland 
County Bar Association, is a 
founding board member of 
the Farmington/Farmington 
Hills Foundation for Youth and 
Families and is a member of 
the Farmington/Farmington 
Hills Commission on Children, 
Youth and Families.
Judge Parker freely shares her 
knowledge and perspectives. 
“I’ve always had an interest in 
educating new lawyers and 
judges,
” she said. “I speak regu-
larly at seminars. I’ve also spo-
ken for Jewish Family Service’s 
Law Day.
”
Royal Oak District Court 
Judge Derek Meinecke, a col-
league of Judge Wittenberg, 
knows his fellow jurist Marla 
Parker well.
“Judge Parker has been a 
great mentor for me on the 
bench,” he said. “
About 10 years 
ago, in the early stage of my 
legal career, I was assigned as 
a prosecutor to Judge Parker’s 
47th District Court. What 
impressed me was the decency 
in which she would treat peo-
ple and the care that she would 
take to her docket. 
“Over the years, I have regu-
larly touched base with her on 
different ways to approach cases. 

Through her working with the 
domestic violence community 
response team, we used her 
court efforts and her forward 
thinking as a model to create 
our own domestic violence 
response team. 
“Judge Parker is a real leader 
in coming up with good ideas 
and making sure that the peo-
ple of her community are well 
served,
” said Judge Meinecke.
Staci Wittenberg said Judges 
Parker and Wittenberg had 
much respect for each other. 
Judge Parker recalls, “Judge 
Wittenberg was an amazing 
man with an exceedingly pos-
itive attitude and a very good 
listener — someone who really 
wanted to make a difference.
”
Judge Meinecke added, “I 
looked at the two honorees at 
the Jewish Bar Association event 
and I thought, ‘Wow, just two 
great, great people!’ It’s going to 
be a signature night.
”

JUDGE WITTENBERG
Judge Jamie Wittenberg, 
JBAM’s Ruth Bader Ginsburg 
Champion of Justice awardee, 
bravely fought off glioblastoma, 
an aggressive form of brain can-
cer, for over three years until his 
passing last November.
“My husband would want to 
be remembered for being fair, 

open-minded and courageous,
” 
Staci Wittenberg said. “He really 
thought that he had found a way 
to beat the cancer. He, unfortu-
nately, didn’t, but he did find a 
way to prolong his life.
”
Judge Wittenberg was a 
wonderful father to their four 
daughters, Arielle, 18, Talia, 16, 
and twins Brooke and Maya, 13, 
Staci said. “The most important 
thing to Jamie was his four girls. 
He said all the time, ‘I’m fight-
ing for my girls.
’” 
The Wittenbergs were mar-
ried 19 years. “I met Jamie in 
2000 when he was in law school, 
and I was with him till the end,
” 
Staci said.
“He had a good sense of 
humor,
” she added. “
And he 
was passionate about his job. 
He worked until three months 
before he died. What kept him 
going was not only me and the 
girls but his job. He also had 
the Sobriety Court at work, and 
there were people in recovery 
who praised him to me at the 
funeral. 
“Jamie always had a very pos-
itive attitude about the cancer. 
He never said, ‘This isn’t fair’ or 
‘Why me?’ He always would just 
say it happened to me because I 
could handle it.
”
Judge Wittenberg’s brother, 
Oakland County Treasurer 

Staci and Jamie Wittenberg

Derek Meinecke, left, was a prosecutor 
in Judge Marla Parker’s courtroom. 
Later, as a judge in Royal Oak, he 
served with Jamie Wittenberg, right.

