Bellingham Mayor Lund selects new city judge; awaiting City Council confirmation
Bellingham Municipal Court Commissioner Nicholas Henery is Mayor Kim Lund’s choice for the court’s second judicial position as the bench expands to handle a growing local caseload.
City Council members are scheduled to vote on Henery’s appointment at their March 9 meeting, according to the published agenda. Henery presides over both Mental Health Court and the new Community Court, a drug-treatment and jail-diversion program that he played a direct role in creating last year.
“Case numbers have gone up, they are more complicated, and more of them are going to trial. Adding a second judge gives the Bellingham Municipal Court the capacity it needs to deal with this increased workload and provide better service to the community,” Lund told The Bellingham Herald in an email.
A unanimous City Council vote created the new judge position Feb. 9. A selection process through Feb. 20 produced four candidates.
According to an annual report on the court, some 23,672 cases were filed in 2024 and a total of 11,108 hearings were held. That grew to 27,079 cases filed in 2025, with 17,105 hearings held.
“Over the past several years caseload filings and severity have increased. Currently, the court is staffed by one judge and one commissioner. Commissioners cannot hear trials, which limits the capacity of the court. This appointment will increase court capacity,” Deputy City Administrator Forrest Longman wrote in a memo to the council.
If Henery’s appointment is confirmed, he will be sworn in during the City Council meeting on Monday for a term that will last through Jan. 1, 2030. An election for the seat is scheduled for November 2029.
His salary will be $226,092, and his appointment is effective March 16, a city spokesperson told The Bellingham Herald in an email.
“I’m ready to step into this role and hit the ground running on day one,” Henery said in his letter of application.
Municipal Court Judge Debra Lev appointed Henery as court commissioner in 2022, according to the court’s website. Before serving as a court commissioner, Henery was a law clerk and a deputy public defender for Skagit County. He earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Western Washington University and a law degree from Gonzaga University in Spokane.
Lev will be presiding judge initially, and the two jurists eventually will rotate that role.
In his letter of application, Henery said that he presides over all gross misdemeanor and misdemeanor offenses that come before the court from within Bellingham city limits. He presided over about 7,500 criminal hearings in 2025, including cases that involved DUI, domestic violence, assaults, thefts, shoplifting, trespassing and controlled substance charges.
He also presides over civil infractions, including parking and traffic violations, dangerous dog complaints, code enforcement, and any appeals of a hearing examiner’s decisions.
Once the new judge position is filled, the commissioner position will be frozen.
This story was originally published March 5, 2026 at 2:45 PM.
