---
title: "Amy Kaestner | KnowJudges"
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page_type: "judge_profile"
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---

# Amy Kaestner

Snohomish County - Municipal Courts - Everett · Judge

## Profile

- Court: Snohomish County - Municipal Courts - Everett
- State: Washington
- Role: Judge
- Service status: active
- Last verified: 2026-07-26

## Summary

Official statewide and applicable court procedural guidance applies to this judge.

## Before you appear

- Read the judge-specific standing order first when one is listed.
- Check the docket and case orders for requirements that supersede broader guidance.
- Confirm current remote-access and courtroom technology arrangements before the proceeding.

## Courtroom Rules

### photography recording

Scope: statewide

Washington GR 16 allows video recording, audio recording, and still photography by the news media in courtrooms only after the judge has expressly granted permission.

Evidence excerpt: Video and audio recording and still photography by the news media are allowed in the courtroom during and between sessions, provided (1) that permission shall have first been expressly granted by the judge

[Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf)
Source checked: 2026-07-26

### limitations on recording

Scope: statewide

If a Washington judge limits courtroom photography or recording, GR 16 requires particularized findings on the record and treats open access as presumed.

Evidence excerpt: Open access is presumed; limitations on access must be supported by reasons found by the judge to be sufficiently compelling to outweigh that presumption

[Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf)
Source checked: 2026-07-26


## Sources

- [Official profile](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=1267&orgid=634)
- [Official roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=1267&orgid=634)
- [Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts official judicial roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=1267&orgid=634)
- [Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf)

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## Biography

### Professional career

- Presiding judge at Everett Municipal Court in Snohomish County, Washington, serving since her 2017 appointment and election
- Elected: She ran unopposed in the 2017 municipal court election and was sworn in by Presiding Judge Laura Van Slyck
- Court structure: Everett Municipal Court has two full-time elected judges and one appointed Commissioner Judge
- In summary: Judge Amy Kaestner is a seasoned public defender turned municipal court presiding judge in Everett, WA, with a focus on community justice, mental health alternatives, and equitable treatment in the court system

### Education


### Additional information

- Appointed: In October 2017, Mayor Ray Stephanson appointed Kaestner as interim judge after Judge Thomas Wynne’s early retirement.
- Over 17 years in public defense, she has worked in District and Municipal Courts, gaining expertise in criminal justice, mental health issues, and community court programs.
- Kaestner has emphasized the importance of community court in providing structure, individualized attention, and continuity of care to disrupt cycles of repeated law enforcement contact.
- She has supported expanding the Mental Health Alternatives Program (MAP) in collaboration with Presiding Judge Van Slyck.
- She earned her bachelor’s and law degrees from the University of Washington and began her legal career as a public defender in Snohomish County.
- Career: Kaestner is an “almost native” of Everett, moving from California at age three.



## Published courtroom rules

### Shared court rules

- [Washington GR 16, Courtroom Photography and Recording by the News Media](https://knowjudges.com/courtroom-rules/national-shared-set-7133c6bd26c80972b86e0d31) — Scope is limited to the court class in the source claim.  Shared court context only; case-type restrictions, exceptions, later amendments and case orders apply. This is not a personal preference or a complete rules inventory. [Official source](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_rules/pdf/GR/GA_GR_16_00_00.pdf). Collected 2026-07-26.
