---
title: "Sonia Rodriguez True | KnowJudges"
canonical: "https://knowjudges.com/kyj/judge/sonia-rodriguez-true-judge-yakima-county-superior-court-782-wa"
page_type: "judge_profile"
updated: "2026-07-26"
---

# Sonia Rodriguez True

Yakima County - Superior Court · Judge

## Profile

- Court: Yakima County - Superior Court
- 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=782&orgid=743)
- [Official roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=782&orgid=743)
- [Washington State Administrative Office of the Courts official judicial roster](https://www.courts.wa.gov/court_dir/index.cfm?fa=court_dir.persondetail&indid=782&orgid=743)
- [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

- Judge Rodriguez True was appointed to the Yakima County Superior Court bench in July 2022 after serving as a Family Law Court Commissioner for over a year.
- Yakima County Superior Court judge, appointed in 2022, recognized as the first Latino to serve in that role, with a long career in family, juvenile, and community law.
- The first Latino to hold the position of Yakima County Superior Court Commissioner
- Judge Rodriguez True has been active in Yakima for over 20 years, serving on boards such as United Way of Central Washington (Board Chair), Yakima Valley Memorial Hospital, Yakima Federal Savings & Loan, YMCA/YWCA, and the Opportunities Industrial Center

### Education

- A graduate of the Annie Wright School in Tacoma, she obtained a BA in Philosophy and Ethnic Studies and a J.D. from the University of Washington School of Law in 2000.

### Additional information

- She was unopposed in the 2023 retention election and continues to preside over cases, including guardianship and probate matters.
- After law school, she practiced in Yakima for nearly two decades, specializing in family and juvenile law and other complex legal matters.
- She was also the first Latino to serve on the Yakima City Council, where she helped launch the City’s Gang Free Initiative.
- She credits her success to her faith, her mother’s emphasis on education, and the support of her grandmother.
- She co‐founded In This Together, a gang prevention nonprofit.
- Her honors include the Governor’s Award of Excellence, City of Yakima Distinguished Service Award, YWCA Citizen of the Year, and the Casey Excellence for Children Leadership Award.
- She and her husband have opened their home to more than 20 trauma‐affected children over the past decade.
- Born in East Los Angeles to a single mother, she moved to Washington to escape gang violence and poverty.



## 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.
