U.S. District Court Chief Judge John J. McConnell Jr. clearly remembers the first time he met Nora Tyer-Witek. It was 2016, and Tyer-Witek was a finalist for the position of clerk of court.
“She was the most prepared person I have ever interviewed for any job at any time in my 62 years of life,” said McConnell.
Tyer-Witek, 46, didn’t fit the typical profile for the post. Rather than rising through the ranks of the court system, she had built a formidable 20-year career in the U.S. Marine Corps, where she became a senior lawyer.
That intrigued both McConnell and then-Chief Judge William E. Smith.