MURRIETA - Judge Timothy F. Freer once had dreams of being a high-rolling sports agent, but he decided the high calling of the law was more his style. That doesn't mean he misses an opportunity to channel his inner Jerry McGuire now and then, as he banters about sports with attorneys and staff - especially when it comes to his favorite teams.

Freer, who oversees criminal cases, chuckled recently when recalling an attorney who asked about his beloved Redskins last fall.

"He obviously hadn't been paying attention to the sports page," Freer said in his chambers at Murrieta's Southwest Justice Center. "The Redskins had just lost in the playoffs. My deputy was like, 'Why did you have to bring that up to the judge?'"

Talking about sports and other lighthearted subjects helps release tension in a courtroom devoted to dealing with society's worst ills, Freer said. "Lawyers have a difficult job to do, and I think it helps them feel a little bit better knowing they don't have to be on edge."

And it underscores the congenial atmosphere that the 46-year-old judge, who was appointed to the Riverside County Superior Court bench two years ago, likes to keep in his court.

He said he wants attorneys to "have confidence that I won't jump all over them or bark in their faces for any little mistake or error."

Lawyers say they enjoy appearing before Freer. They can expect to chat about sports or weekend plans. But the judge is also a stickler for preparation and efficiency. To help speed trials along in the state's busiest Superior Court system, Freer sits down with lawyers beforehand to schedule exactly how long witnesses will testify and how long cross-examinations will take.

Deputy District Attorney Sam Kaloustian tried a recent murder case before Freer.

"He's a very organized judge," Kaloustian said. "It's nice to have a judge who wants to move a case along and not waste a jury's time."

Deputy District Attorney Christopher Peuvrelle added that the judge "cares about getting things right" and doesn't rush through decisions.

The praise is equally effusive from the other side. Deputy Public Defender Richard Briones-Coleman opposed Freer in several cases when the judge was a prosecutor. He said he was worried that Freer, the judge, would be biased based on Freer, the lawyer, who he said was an "aggressive and sometimes unyielding prosecutor."

His fears were unfounded, Briones-Coleman said. "He really listens to and seriously considers the arguments of defense counsel, and frankly, that's my bottom line expectation," he said.

Nic Cocis, a Murrieta criminal defense sole practitioner, said Freer is good at bringing parties together when a settlement is called for. In a recent preliminary hearing before Freer, Cocis' client accused her estranged husband of rape and criminally threatening her. But then discrepancies arose between what she had told police and what she testified to on the stand, he said.

Freer "brought the prosecutor and myself together and helped us resolve the case," Cocis said. He said prosecutors dropped the rape charge against the ex-husband, and the man pleaded guilty to making a criminal threat.

Freer was born in Portland, Ore., one of five children, three boys and two girls. The family moved around a lot as Freer was growing up, he said, because of his father's job as an administrator for what then was called the Veterans Administration hospitals. His mother was a registered nurse at some of the same facilities. Freer spent chunks of his childhood in northern Virginia, upstate New York and Colorado.

"We were government brats, so to speak," he said.

He earned a history degree at Wisconsin's Marquette University in 1984, and a law degree at Sacramento's McGeorge School of Law three years later. His father, who has a law degree, influenced his decision to go to law school, he said.

Freer joined the Ventura County district attorney's office in 1987 so he could get trial experience before becoming a sports agent.

"I thought one way to develop as a superstar agent would be to get some trials in," he said.

But prosecuting cases soon became his real passion, and he ditched plans to go into sports.

"I realized this was something I loved to do, and this was public service," Freer said.

He signed on with the Riverside County district attorney's office in 1989. He tried juvenile, narcotics and other types of offenses, but Freer was mostly known as the go-to man for emotionally tough prosecutions involving child abuse, molestation and murder.

One particularly egregious case he handled was that of Jimmie Battle. The Riverside man was convicted of torturing his young second cousin, thrashing her repeatedly with a phone cord that left deep whip marks on her back. Battle was sentenced to 85-years-to-life, plus another life term because his conviction was his third strike. People v. Battle, CR67556 (Riverside County Super. Ct., filed 1996).

Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Freer to the bench in June 2007. He has heard exclusively criminal cases at the Southwest Justice Center since donning his robe. He initially heard preliminary hearings, trial readiness hearings and presided over the master calendar. He oversaw those cases until another judge had docket room to hear the trial.

Since August, Freer has had a trial assignment. Four of his last five trials have been murders.

Sitting in the busiest court system in the state - where judges have had to dismiss cases because there are too few jurists - Freer tries to keep trials moving at a quick clip. The detailed witness timelines he sets with lawyers are essential to that goal, he said.

"The easiest way to manage trials is to be as organized as you can from the beginning," Freer said.

And Freer doesn't miss the opportunities to appreciate the lighter things in life. Off the bench, the judge likes to spend time with his wife, Alina Freer - a former prosecutor and defense attorney - and their 15-year-old daughter and 11-year-old son.

He's also a classic car enthusiast and is a history buff. Books on the Civil War line his chambers bookshelves.

In the courtroom, however, Freer is all business. Well, most of the time. The judge doesn't let his passion for sports get in the way of his work, he said. Checking scores while on the bench, for example, is a no-no, of course.

But when stepping off the bench recently during a murder trial, one of his staff slipped him a note. His alma mater, Marquette University, had won a key basketball game.

"That made my day a little brighter," Freer said.

Career Highlights: Appointed by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger to Riverside County Superior Court, June 2007; deputy district attorney, Riverside, 1989-2007; deputy district attorney, Ventura, 1987-89 Law School: McGeorge School of Law, 1987 Age: 46

Here are some of Judge Freer's recent cases and the lawyers involved:

People v. Aguilar, SWF021002 - attempted murder

For the prosecution: Christopher Peuvrelle, Riverside County district attorney's office

For the defense: Sara J. Jewett, Riverside County public defender's office

People v. Hernandez, SWF005013 - murder

For the prosecution: Sam Kaloustian, Riverside County district attorney's office

For the defense: Erin Kirkpatrick, Riverside County public defender's office

People v. Sledge, SWF015079 - murder

For the prosecution: Brandon Smith, Riverside County district attorney's office

For the defense: Sara J. Jewett, Riverside County public defender's office

People v. Valdez, SWF015124 - attempted murder

For the prosecution: Blaine Hopp, Riverside County district attorney's office

For the defense: Colleen Lawler, Law Offices of Colleen Lawler, Murrieta

People v. Contreras, SWF016160 - murder

For the prosecution: Dan Delimon, Riverside County district attorney's office

For the defense: Paul Grech, Grech & Firetag, Riverside

jason_armstrong@dailyjournal.com