Barney called to sit with Mo. Supreme Court

JEFFERSON CITY - Judge Robert Barney of Dexter, who serves on the Missouri Court of Appeals, Southern District, sat Tuesday morning by special designation with the Supreme Court of Missouri. Barney was filling the vacancy created by the appointment of Judge Stephen N. Limbaugh Jr. to the federal district bench in St. Louis.

"I am pleased Judge Barney was able to sit with the Court this morning,"

Chief Justice Laura Denvir Stith said. "When the Court needs to have special judges sit, due to recusals or other absences of our judges, it is nice to have such talented and conscientious judges from all levels of the court system throughout the state to call upon for assistance."

Barney heard all four cases on the Court's docket, including Case No. SC89282, State ex rel. BJC Health System v. The Honorable Donald L. McCullin, Case No. SC89283, State ex rel. CH Allied Services, Inc., d/b/aBoone Hospital Center v. The Honorable Donald L. McCullin, and Case No. SC89284, State ex rel. James Bruce Pitt, D.O., and Columbia Surgical Associates v. The Honorable Donald L. McCullin, an appeal from the City of St. Louis regarding the proper venue in a medical malpractice case; and Case No. SC89571, John C. Middleton, et al. v. Missouri Department of Corrections, et al, an appeal from Cole County challenging the application of the administrative procedure act to the lethal injection protocol.

This is the sixth time Barney has sat as a special judge with the Supreme Court. He was appointed to the court of appeals in December 1995 and retained in 1998. Before serving as a judge, Barney served in the U.S. Army from 1966 to 1969 attaining the rank of Captain, practiced law in Stoddard County for twelve years before he served overseas in the United States Diplomatic Corps for the United States Department of State from 1979 to1982, was elected to the Missouri House of Representatives in 1983, 1984 and 1986; and was elected as an associate circuit judge in the 35th Judicial Circuit (Dunklin and Stoddard counties) from 1987 to 1995.