Archives West Finding Aid

In the first interview session, conducted on January 27, 2005, Marsh speaks at length about his family background. He talks about his early life in McMinnville, Oregon, including his education, his family's experiences during the Depression, and his memories of life during World War II. He also briefly talks about his service in the U.S. Army in Japan just after the end of the war. He then discusses his experience studying law at the University of Oregon, including some of his classes and professors. He talks about his marriage to Shari Long. He speaks about practicing law in Salem with his law partner, Ned Clark, and describes how he came to specialize in product liability cases. He discusses his Christian faith, and also talks about how it affects his choices during sentencing. He talks about his appointment to the U.S. District Court of Oregon in 1987. He speaks at length about political polarization in the U.S., and shares his thoughts about how to address it. He talks about his professional ethics, discusses his reasons for taking senior status in 1998, and shares stories about arguing cases before Judge Gus Solomon.

In the second interview session, conducted on January 28, 2005, Marsh discusses serving as a judge on the U.S. District Court of Oregon. He talks about adjusting to the workload of a judge, discusses members of his staff and his fellow judges, and describes the role of magistrate judges. He shares his thoughts about the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals; talks about his process for preparing for trial; and speaks at length about sentencing guidelines. He discusses some of the cases he presided over, particularly cases regarding salmon fisheries and the Rajneeshees. He talks about his law clerks; shares his opinion on personality traits that make a good judge; and discusses the increase in case settlements, and decrease in jury trials.

The beginning of this session was recorded simultaneously on Audiocassette 7 and Videocassette 1. In the third and final interview session, conducted on May 10, 2005, Marsh discusses efforts to streamline the U.S. District Court of Oregon, including the use of magistrate judges. He speaks about working with U.S. Attorney Chuck Turner; talks about the increase in cases relating to drugs; and revisits the topic of sentencing guidelines. He shares how his thoughts on immigration laws changed over his career; shares his opinion regarding concerns about judicial activism; and talks about when judges should retire. He also revisits the topic of his reasons for taking senior status. He talks about how his judicial philosophy changed and reflects on his career. He debates the merits of both restorative and retributive justice. He speaks about the role of law clerks, about judges' salaries, and about his role in the construction of the Mark O. Hatfield United States District Courthouse in Portland. He discusses working with Mark Hatfield and John Dellenback. He speaks about his marriage to Shari Long, and about balancing his Christian faith and his role as a judge. He closes the interview by talking about the importance of family.