Charles Earl ‘Chuck’ Jones, Municipal & Superior Court Judge, Retired
June 8, 1934 - December 1, 2021
SAN DIEGO, CA — Chuck ascended to Heaven on December 1, 2021, eight weeks after suffering a stroke. Born to Earl and Vivian Jones at Fort Sam Houston, Texas, Chuck and older brother George grew up in Fort Huachuca, Tombstone and Bisbee, Arizona. His father had a 20-year career in the U. S. Army. Chuck’s childhood in Fort Huachuca burned into his soul a life-long commitment to racial equality: at that time, the U. S. Army was segregated. The officers were White, the soldiers were Black. Chuck never understood why there should be this separation by race.
In historic Tombstone, Chuck would often walk through the OK Corral as a shortcut to school. At age 12, he became the youngest Eagle Scout up to that time in Arizona, and also earned the Order of the Arrow award, bestowed upon the most outstanding Scout in the State of Arizona. He entered high school when he was 12 and graduated at age 16.
At 17, he enlisted in the Air Force, serving his country for four years as a jet mechanic at MacDill Air Force Base in Tampa, Florida. Upon leaving the Air Force, Chuck moved to San Diego, CA, enjoying the carefree beach life, surfing, and his job at an aircraft plant. He enrolled in business courses at San Diego City College. When he took a business law course, he knew law would be his calling. While attending San Diego City College, Chuck married Marilyn Mitchell, with whom he had two sons, Kevin and Steven.
He graduated from San Diego State College with a degree in Business Administration in 1961. He continued on to the University of San Diego School of Law, where he earned a Juris Doctor degree. Chuck’s first law position was with the office of the San Diego County District Attorney as a Deputy District Attorney. A few years later, he became a highly successful criminal defense attorney with some notorious cases, and then returned to the prosecution side of the law with the office of the Imperial County District Attorney as a Deputy District Attorney.
In 1981, Chuck was appointed Municipal Court Judge in Imperial County. A friend who was familiar with Chuck’s criminal defense cases joked that he would never have thought Chuck could ride on the coattails of the Mescaleros, a biker club in North County San Diego, and turn that into a promotion to judge. Chuck ran unopposed in 1984 and 1990.
In 1985, Chuck and Evangelina married and thoroughly enjoyed the warm and personal social life of the Imperial Valley. He was active in various service clubs. When his wife Evangelina was offered her dream job as a bilingual education professor at San Diego State University, Main Campus, he urged her to accept it and they moved to Alpine in East San Diego County. After commuting from Alpine to Calexico for two years, he chose not to run for re-election, and instead worked as an assigned judge who traveled to Southern California sites; he was soon offered continuous work on the bench in Chula Vista and San Diego, finally retiring in 2005.
Chuck was a brilliant, dedicated man with a passion for the law who was committed to applying his legal knowledge and prowess to benefit the people. He was a compassionate man of integrity, fairness and generosity. He loved his family, mariachis, opera, dancing, and he loved to laugh.
Chuck is survived by his loving wife of 36 years, Evangelina, stepson Taheen Lopez, grandchildren Jessica, Justin and Jonathan, and great-granddaughter Caliana Elizabeth. He was pre-deceased by his sons Kevin and Steven.
A Celebration of Life will be held at EricksonAnderson Mortuary, 8390 Allison Avenue in La Mesa, CA (619) 466-3297, on January 17, Martin Luther King, Jr. Day, at 10:30 A. M.
If you wish to honor his life, please consider donating to Father Joe’s Villages, the JacobCushman San Diego Food Bank, or the Imperial Valley Food Bank. A longer, more detailed version of this obituary is available online.