Former state and federal prosecutor Mark Massa will replace retiring Chief Justice Randall Shepard on the Indiana Supreme Court.
Mark Massa began his legal career as Chief Justice Shepard’s law clerk and has also spent time as Governor Mitch Daniels’ chief counsel. Massa says he’s humbled by the appointment.
“This is a sobering responsibility and an honor that it really beyond words.”
One of the three finalists for the position was a woman, Indiana Judicial Center director Jane Seigel. There has only been one woman ever to serve on the state’s high court, but Daniels says gender was not a top factor in his decision.
“The criteria, I should say, begin with merit, intellectual and otherwise, experience, principles and temperament. I am quite at peace that this is the finest choice we could have made.”
Massa will replace Shepard on the Court but not as chief justice; the state Judicial Nominating Commission will choose the new chief justice sometime in the future.
