By ANDREW MARTIN

HOPE VALLEY — Outgoing state Supreme Court Chief Justice Frank J. Williams did not mince words about his reasons for choosing to retire now and not in 2010, as he had previously projected. “One, this is Rhode Island. They don’t believe you when you say you’re going to do something and actually do it,” he said while sitting in his former law office on Main Street in Hope Valley recently.

Williams — who announced his retirement in a surprise move on Dec. 11 — was referring to the fact that he committed to serving no more than 10 years when he was first appointed by then Gov. Lincoln Almond in 2001. Before then, Williams served as a Superior Court Associate Judge. Williams explained that he believed the court could accomplish what he set out to do in 10 years. “We got it done,” he said. Some of his tenure’s many accolades include the passage of Separation of Powers legislation, which recognized the judiciary as a separate, co-equal branch of government, and construction of the new Kent County Courthouse and the state Traffic Tribunal. “And secondly, I was in the military for five years. We were very mission oriented,” Williams continued — he served in the U.S. Army from 1962 to 1967, during which he achieved the rank of captain. “You go out on a long-range mission patrol, you do your mission, you come back, you get another mission. “That’s where I am now.” Another reason was the administrative side of his position and its duties. Williams described it as “all consuming” and “24-7,” though he said that is his style.
He then shot down the various rumors he had heard about his retirement. “I’m in good health. I’m not having any affairs. I’m not running for governor,” he said. Although Williams ends his tenure on Thursday, he will continue to act as a retired justice and perform duties such as mediation and pre-briefing conference. Or, as he called it, all things relating to the law, which is his first love. The acting Chief Justice as of Dec. 31 will be Maureen McKenna Goldberg, the Supreme Court’s senior associate justice. “I want to continue my judicial duties, just not as chief,” Williams added.
He will also continue his role as chief judge of the U.S. Court of Military Commission Review, which is the appeals court for Guantanamo Bay detainees. But, as he noted, whether that court will continue under Barack Obama remains to be seen. With more free time on his hands, Williams, a Richmond resident, said he plans to cook and bake more.
He cooks everything, he said, from breakfast foods like omelets to soup to sauces to vinaigrettes. As for baking, he does it all – “pies, tarts, you name it.” Chances are that you might have caught him strutting his stuff on PBS’s “Ciao Italia” with Mary Ann Esposito.
He said he hopes she will have him back. Williams then commented on the fact that there are very few restaurants in the Chariho area, where he has lived since 1977 with his wife, Virginia. But he did mention he frequently runs into people at West’s Bakery and other local eateries. His dream, though, is to open a nice Italian, family-style restaurant. But he admitted he would never actually do it because he knows how difficult the restaurant business is after representing restaurateurs as an attorney.
Does Williams plan on running for a position in Richmond town government again? He does not think he can since he is on recall as a judge, though Williams had previously served as Town Moderator, which he said he loved. But he had to give that up when he went on the Superior Court in 1995. He also served and enjoyed his years in Hopkinton as Town Solicitor and Probate Judge. And then there is the time Williams will spend on another one of his loves: writing, reading, researching, and speaking about Abraham Lincoln, whose bicentennial birthday is next year. Williams said he discovered his appreciation for the former president at 11 years old. Two years later, when he learned of Lincoln’s law career, he was inspired to become a lawyer. “That’s what started all this,” Williams said. He added that he is currently working on an annotated bibliography of every book and pamphlet on Lincoln since 1865, which equates to more than 16,000 documents.
On top of that, Williams, 68, is writing a new book that depicts “Lincoln as hero,” he said. As for his own legacy, Williams said he hopes to be remembered as someone who was bold and not afraid of change. “As someone who cared for the people and the staff and got things done,” he continued. “And as someone who, through the bureaucracy of state government, ran the judiciary like a business and stayed within our budget.”