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23 has natural gray hair, and of course I dye mine. But it is indeed a pleasure to honor one of our Hancock County natives who went on to be a judge, a federal judge, and it's our pleasure to introduce the Honorable Walter J. Gex, III, United States District Court Judge. (APPLAUSE.) BY JUDGE GEX: Thanks, Pam. Judge Vlahos, Judge Russell, and many friends and distinguished guest. It's really a pleasure for me to be here. I'm one of the few, and there are a few more here, that have been to two hangings for an individual who's never been indicted for an offense without counsel, and it's really a pleasure to witness that. I'm not sure it occurs very often in a judicial proceeding, but we're here. And it's really a pleasure. For those of you that are not aware, you've heard an awful lot of the virtues of Judge Russell extolled, and they're all true. And I can witness them. But many of you may not be aware of the fact that Judge Russell had a very distinguished military career. He JAMIE L. WETZEL, CSR - CIRCUIT COURT REPORTER

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