If only traffic in his home county in congested Northern Virginia moved as quickly as LeRoy F. Millette Jr.'s judicial career.

Millette yesterday became Virginia's newest Supreme Court justice -- the 99th in a court that considers itself the oldest in the nation, tracing its origins to a royal dictate issued in the 17th century.

Only last August, Millette -- a veteran judge who presided at the Prince William County Circuit Court trial of John Allen Muhammad, mastermind of the Washington-area sniper shootings -- was appointed by Gov. Timothy M.
9/5/08 1:31 PM
on inRich.com Kaine to the Virginia Court of Appeals.

And last month, Kaine bumped Millette to the seven-member Supreme Court, filling a vacancy created by the departure of G. Steven Agee of Roanoke County. Agee joined the 4th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals.

Sworn in by Chief Justice Leroy R. Hassell Jr. as Kaine watched, Millette said in brief remarks from the bench, "I am honored by the challenge, and I promise I will do my utmost."

Millette, 59, is a Pennsylvania native who grew up in Alexandria and Fairfax County. He's a shooting guard in pick-up basketball and Redskins enthusiast whose friends and family call him "Lee." He was in private practice and a prosecutor in Prince William County before he began his judicial career in 1990 in general district court.

"This is one of the best things I did," said former Del. David G. Brickley, D-Prince William, who -- along with now-Senate Finance Committee Chairman Charles J. Colgan, D-Prince William -- backed Millette for his first judgeship.

Millette must be confirmed by the General Assembly when it returns in January. Approval seems likely, though his nomination to the appeals court was briefly threatened by House Republicans.

In February, GOP delegates considered removing Millette and Justice S. Bernard Goodwyn, another Kaine appointee, in a perceived power play to guarantee their control over the selection of a judge on the State Corporation Commission.

That SCC slot also has been filled by a Kaine selection -- James C. Dimitri, a private regulatory lawyer. He took office Wednesday and potentially faces a confirmation fight next winter.

With Millette's ascent to the Supreme Court, his seat on the appeals court will fall to another gubernatorial pick -- Chesterfield County Circuit Court Judge Cleo F. Powell. The first African-American woman on the intermediate court, Powell, too, must be endorsed by the legislature.
Contact Jeff E. Schapiro at (804) 649-6814 or jschapiro@timesdispatch.com.