Timing is everything: Judge Stevens reflects on law, military service, and family

As the current term of Superior Court District 5 Judge Henry L. Stevens IV comes to an end in December of next year, he has announced he will not seek re-election. In an interview with Duplin Journal, Stevens said the decision is about timing and family as he reflected on his career in law and the military.

“I’m coming to the end of an eight-year term at Superior Court that’s going to give me almost 27 years on the bench,” Stevens said. “In the state of North Carolina, you’re maxed out at 25 years on the bench for retirement purposes and longevity pay. A lot of it has to do with the fact that if I retire, I can actually support my family a little bit better.”

Law has always been in Stevens’ blood.

“I always wanted to be a lawyer,” he said. “My dad was a lawyer for 25 years and he was the senior resident Superior Court judge for the 4th Judicial District. I’m the senior resident now, but it goes by the 5th District.”

District 5 includes Duplin, Sampson, Jones, and Onslow counties.

Stevens’ lineage of lawyers in the family goes back to his great-grandfather in the 1800s.

After attending the University of North Carolina, his plan was to go to law school and then join the Marine Corps, following in the footsteps of his father. However, he changed his mind and went into the Marines first. He went on active duty as an assault amphibian officer at Camp Lejeune.

“The timing was interesting because the minute I hit the fleet was when Desert Storm occurred,” Stevens recalled. “I went over there and came back and went to law school.”

After getting his law degree, he returned to the area and became an assistant attorney general under D.A. Bill Andrews in Onslow County. After serving as a prosecutor for a few years, as fate would have it, the only district court judge in Duplin County decided to retire in the middle of his term. Gov. James Hunt appointed Stevens to the bench to fill the vacancy.

After serving in the Marine Corps, Stevens remained in the reserves for a while while working as a prosecutor. A local district court judge also served as the state staff judge advocate for the National Guard. He gave Stevens advice on staying connected with the military.

“Son, you can’t give up all those years. You need to come to the National Guard,” the judge told him.

Stevens was hesitant about joining the National Guard after serving as a Marine until he recalled an interaction with his father.

“I remember a conversation in the kitchen with my father before he died,” Stevens reflected. “He was also a Marine in World War II. He went to law school and went to the third JAG course the Navy ever had. That was during the Korean War.”

Stevens said his father told him when he returned from serving in the Marines, the National Guard wanted him to come in. He decided not to.

“I remember him telling me that it was his only regret in life.”

Stevens joined the National Guard and found himself again with interesting timing. His unit was immediately called up to go to Iraq in 2003, where he would serve for the next 18 months. This was during the same period in his life that he was serving as a district court judge. He retired from the National Guard as a colonel and as the state judge advocate in 2020.

Family played a major role in his decision not to seek another term.

“I’ve had a dual career that’s kept me very busy, taking me away from the kids a lot. I have twins (a boy and a girl) that are in the eighth grade. They are very active in sports, pageants and everything else,” Stevens said.

His twins attend Harrell’s Christian Academy.

“They play several games in Raleigh,” Stevens said. “They generally play at 5:30 p.m., and being on the bench, I can’t get there. I really want to be there for them, to support them, because it goes awfully fast.”

As he prepares to step away from the bench, Stevens has endorsed Judge Robert H. Gilmore for the District 5 Superior Court seat in next year’s election.