Robert Elston, `Dedicated Jurist' With A `Subtle Sense Of Humor'

Robert Elston used to tell attorneys that he was one of the rare members of the legal profession appointed twice to the King County Superior Court bench.

Judge Elston, who served nearly two decades before he retired in 1987, died Nov. 13 at his Mercer Island home after a long bout with cancer. He was 71.

"He was a dedicated jurist," someone attorneys would choose to hear complicated cases if they had the chance, observed former Superior Court Judge Richard Broz.

But he also "had a subtle sense of humor" and would recount the story of his double appointment "with a smile," Broz said.

Former Gov. Dan Evans first named Judge Elston, then a Shoreline Justice Court judge, to the Superior Court position in June 1968. But Judge Elston lost an election bid for the position that fall.

A Superior Court committee immediately selected him to become a Juvenile Court commissioner, a post he held for about six months until the next summer, when Evans appointed him again - this time to one of four new King County Superior Court judgeships.

A son, Seattle attorney Douglas Elston, said, "From what I've heard, he had a reputation of running a real tight ship . . . strict about attorneys being late and that sort of thing."

A native of Columbus, Neb., Judge Elston was a staff sergeant in the Army in Alaska during World War II.

He came to Seattle from Davenport, Iowa, in about 1949 and earned a degree from the University of Washington Law School in 1953. He then entered private law practice in Seattle. He was an assistant state attorney general between 1960 and 1963, when he became the first elected judge of the Shoreline District Justice Court.

Judge Elston served two terms as president of the Washington State Magistrates' Association and two terms as chairman of the King County District Judges' Association. The State Bar Association presented him an award of merit in 1965.

Editor of the Washington State Bar News for more than 10 years, Judge Elston also served as vice chairman and chairman of the King County Commission on Alcoholism and received a distinguished service award from the state Department of Health for his work in combating alcoholism.

Judge Elston served on various boards and committees, including the Shoreline YMCA and the King County Mental Health Retardation Board.

June Elston said her husband was a great sports fan, following the fortunes of local teams,"especially the Mariners." He also was a fan of exercise. "He liked to walk and we did a lot of that," she said.

Besides his wife, who lives on Mercer Island, and son, Douglas Elston, of Mill Creek, survivors include two more sons, Ronald Elston of Renton, and Steven Elston of Mercer Island; a daughter, Patricia Elston, of Hillsborough, N.J.; a brother, Harold Elston, of Denver; a sister, Dorothy Irish, of Fresno, Calif., and two grandchildren.

At his request, no services were held. The family suggests remembrances in Judge Elston's name to the American Cancer Society, 2120 First Ave. N., Seattle 98109.