TORRANCE -- Judge Rene C. Gilbertson is new to the bench and, uniquely, a public courtroom.
She spent 20 years working as deputy county counsel in juvenile dependency, which consists of confidential hearings without an audience.
So when Gilbertson took on a high-volume misdemeanor calendar in Los Angeles County Superior Court, she couldn't help but feel a little anxious about making sure... (continued)