Judge Cathy Dowd Retires Shortly After Mateen Cleaves Sexual Assult Case [VIDEO]

She served as a judge in the 67th district court for nearly a decade, handled one of the most high profile cases of the year, and is now taking off the black robe for good.

Dowd is also a two time cancer survivor, who changed careers at age 40, WHILE battling breast cancer according to ABC 12. She has an interesting (and in my personal opinion, respectable) view on addiction cases, saying that putting people in jail hibernates the problem and that her goal is treatment, not jail time. She believes that's where she made the biggest impact in her career. Concerning her decision to dismiss charges in the Mateen Cleaves sexual assult case, Dowd says, "I'm a human being, I can make a mistake, but I don't think I did in that case." Dowd goes on to mention that she plans on staying right here in Flint and thanks the city for letting her realize her dream.