This is the ninth of our Court Times articles that highlight up close and personal a member of the Indiana Judiciary. Clay County Circuit Court Judge Joseph D. Trout is our judge featured in this issue. Judge Trout was elected as Circuit Court Judge in 2007. He graduated from Indiana State University in 1978, and received his Doctor of Jurisprudence from Indiana University-Indianapolis in 1983. He served as Deputy Prosecutor in Vigo County from 1984 to 1989 and was the Brazil City Attorney from 2004 to 2006.
What do you like most and least about being a trial court judge?
In Clay County we have a long history of excellent trial court judges. Judge Robert Neal, who was later appointed to the Court of Appeals, and Ernest Yelton who presided in the Clay Circuit Court for twenty-five years, have set the standard pretty high. These Judges did not shy away from serious or high profile cases and presided over numerous jury trials. I guess if I had to say what I liked the most about being a trial court judge it would be presiding over jury trials. As a lawyer of twenty-three years prior to taking the bench, my law practice was primarily in the area of trial practice/litigation. Because of that experience, I feel comfortable and confident in handling civil and criminal jury trials. For me, having a jury trial as a judge is a lot less stressful than I remember it being when I was a practicing attorney.
Probably my least favorite part about the responsibility of being a judge is the “Protective Order Statute.” Don’t get me wrong, I feel I am very helpful and understanding as a judge in regard to pro se litigation; however, at least in our county, the unfettered filing for protective orders requesting all sorts of relief for all sorts of reasons has become quite burdensome. In my humble opinion, this statute needs more work.
What was your major at Indiana State University and why did you decide to study law?
I graduated from Indiana State University in 1979 (the year Larry Bird and the Sycamores were National Runners Up in basketball) with a major in Business Administration and a minor in Management. I had always wanted to practice law. I think it was my mother who convinced me in high school that I needed to be an attorney. Perhaps she had fallen in love with Perry Mason, but in any event, I never wavered from her choice and my goal. I chose business because, if for some reason my dream of becoming a practicing attorney did not come true, I wasn’t sure what I would do with a Political Science Degree.
Everything turned out for the best and I graduated from Indiana University School of Law, Indianapolis in 1983.
What would you do if you were not a judge?
The easy answer would be that I would still be practicing law. I must confess, however, that through the years I have had thoughts of what it would be like to be an architect or a builder. I would bet that there is a lot of job satisfaction in designing a beautiful building or structure and seeing it through to completion.
Who are the people you admire the most?
Although I dearly love my wife, if I had to identify the people I admire the most, I would have to say my parents and my children. I come from a very large family in Clay County, Indiana on both my mother and my father’s side. My parents were excellent role models who encouraged and supported me in every phase of my life. I would also have to say that I admire my three children. They have turned out to be exactly what my wife Nancy and I had hoped they would become. They were great students. They are well-rounded socially. They are of a kind and caring nature and they are a positive influence to their friends and in the community. We are so proud of them.
What are your hobbies or favorite leisure activities?
My father played minor league professional baseball and accordingly my brother and I attempted to follow in his footsteps. We both played high school and college baseball as well as high school basketball. After college for more than twenty years I participated in team sports such as slow-pitch softball; however, now at age 54, team sports are out of the question.
After college, I joined the family Monday night bowling team and bowling has been my winter sport of choice. Having now bowled for more than thirty years, I have continued to get better at it. I have had two 300 games; two 299 games; a 217 average this year; and currently have the highest three-game series ever bowled in Clay County in a sanctioned league at 836 pins. This latter feat prompted a picture and article in the local newspaper which is kind of cool for a judge.
In the summer, I put the bowling ball away and enjoy the occasional round of golf as well as bass, bluegill, and catfish fishing with my two sons. As for family leisure activities, my wife and I, our children, and our grandchildren do enjoy the occasional family vacation. My wife says it’s not a vacation unless it involves an ocean and a beach so most of our summer vacation activities involve the beaches of South Carolina or Florida.
What are your favorite books, and have you read any recently, or are reading now, that you would recommend?
I must confess that with all the reading that lawyers and judges do, I have never been a person who regularly reads as a leisure activity. I have read most all of the Dan Brown books including The DaVinci Code, Angels and Demons, and Deception Point. Having thoroughly enjoyed those books, I must agree with the proposition that the movie is never as good as the book.
As far as recommendations, I would recommend anything written by Dan Brown. He has a very interesting style of writing that holds the reader’s interest.
Where did you grow up and how would you describe your childhood?
I would have to say you would have to look far and wide to find a person who had a better childhood than me. I grew up on the family farm in Brazil, Indiana. My mother’s family owned a small business known as Casassa’s Dairy Farm. This was one of the few and then finally the only dairy in Indiana where we grew the grain to feed the cows, milked the cows, pasteurized and homogenized the milk, put the milk in glass containers, and delivered it to the homes and stores of Clay County. Rarely do you see a business that is involved in the manufacturing of a product from start to finish.
The family business involved grandparents, uncles, aunts, siblings and cousins. It is truly a family business which contributed to the closeness of our family. To this day there are still approximately forty family members that live within a few miles of each other in Clay County. During high school, and while attending college at Indiana State, I always had a summer job on the family farm. In fact, my wife of thirty years, Nancy, who was my high-school sweet heart, used to help me on the milk route delivering milk to people’s homes.
Although the home delivery dairy business has long since given way to the large chain stores, our family still farms approximately 1500 acres.
Do you have a favorite quote?
I have always wanted to be one of those people who could rattle off famous quotes and maybe one of these days I will be. In the meantime, I guess I will settle for the following: “Well done is better than well said.”—Benjamin Franklin.
“What I love most about the law? It’s that every now and again—not often, but occasionally—you get to see a part of justice being done. That really is quite a thrill when that happens.”—Andrew Becket, the movie Philadelphia.
Where is your favorite vacation spot?
My family and I love the ocean and the beach. My nephew is a fishing boat captain in Hilton Head, South Carolina and we enjoy vacationing with him and his family. We are also particularly fond of Siesta Key, Florida. If there is a more beautiful beach with more perfect sand than Siesta Key’s, then I am not aware of it.
What is your favorite meal, recipe, and restaurant?
My family and I are pretty much addicted to crab. If you want the family to come over for dinner, then just have crab on the menu. We love King Crab, Snow Crab, Stone Crab, and Dungeness Crab. As you might imagine, our favorite restaurants are seafood restaurants. When we do make it to Indianapolis, it is kind of a standing joke in our family that my wife would rather go to Joe’s Crab Shack than one of the fancy steak houses that are available.