BI Council reappoints Alpaugh as municipal court judge

Published 1:30 am Wednesday, October 22, 2025

The Bainbridge Island City Council voted unanimously at its Oct. 14 meeting to reappoint Thomas Alpaugh as municipal court judge, a four-year term starting Jan 1, 2026.

Alpaugh was previously appointed in 2024 to replace former municipal court judge Sara McCulloch, following her resignation in late 2023. Alpaugh has previously served as a public defender for the Bainbridge Island Municipal Court, a Poulsbo public defender and as judge pro-tem for both Poulsbo and Bremerton Municipal Courts.

He received his law degree from University of Puget Sound and also holds degrees from both the University of Washington and Seattle University, per city documents

Requirements of the position include: graduate from an accredited law school by the American Bar Association, five years as a practicing attorney, and two years of criminal law experience, including participation as a trial counsel or judge. The member also has to be in good standing, on active or judicial status, of the Washington State Bar Association at time of appointment, documents state.

Council also voted to appoint Councilmember Kirsten Hytopoulos to serve on the committee for interviews for the city attorney position, following Jim Haney’s announcement of his retirement at the end of the year. The process will require four to five hours and will take place in late October, per documents. City Manager Blair King said the new position would start Jan. 1, 2026.

The city has a contract with Washington-based law firm Ogden Murphy Wallace and current attorney Haney is listed in the contract as the attorney the city works with. The contract is set to expire at the end of this year, city communication manager Shannon Hays said. Haney has worked with the city as part of the OMW contract for the last few years, including providing interim services in 2013. If the city hires a city attorney as an employee, there is no term limit. However, if the city contracts with a firm, it would have a contract term. The city hopes to see a great applicant pool of individuals and firms, Hays said.

Council also considered a request proposed by Councilmember Joe Deets to schedule a discussion at a future council meeting to consider an emergency funding request from Helpline House’s foodbank. Funding would come from the council’s contingency fund, per city documents. Several members of the public spoke in support of the initiative as part of public comment.