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Fairfax County Circuit Court Chief Judge Penney S. Azcarate will receive a formal tribute from the Board of Supervisors before retiring June 30, closing a judicial career in the county that has spanned nearly 20 years.

The 10-member board voted unanimously April 14 to prepare a resolution recognizing Azcarate’s service. Franconia District Supervisor Rodney Lusk introduced the measure with Chairman Jeff McKay.

McKay said board members recognize the “great work she has done.”

Azcarate practiced law for nearly a decade before joining Fairfax County General District Court in 2005. She later became that court’s first female chief judge.

After serving there for nearly 10 years, Azcarate moved to the Circuit Court in 2015 as its first female judge. She has led the court as chief judge for the past decade.

At Fairfax County’s State of the Judiciary luncheon in November, Azcarate called her service and leadership “the privilege of my lifetime” and said she was making room for a new generation of leaders.

Her most prominent case was the 2022 defamation trial between actors Johnny Depp and Amber Heard, which attracted national attention and was later parodied on the animated television series “South Park.”

More recently, she presided over criminal proceedings involving Brendan Banfield and Juliana Peres Magalhaes. They faced murder and manslaughter charges, respectively, connected with the 2024 killings of Banfield’s wife and another man.

Azcarate’s influence also extends to specialized programs designed to address the circumstances behind some criminal cases.

In 2014, she established a veterans treatment docket tailored to former service members, including those experiencing overlapping mental health conditions. Azcarate is herself a veteran who served in the U.S. Marine Corps, including during the Gulf War, before attending law school.

She also led the creation of Fairfax County’s drug treatment court for nonviolent offenders. The program combines court supervision with research-based treatment for people struggling with drug use.

Reflecting on her approaching retirement in November, Azcarate said stepping away had shown her how much of her life she had invested in the work.

She added that her career was ultimately not about titles, offices or recognition, but about the people who shared the journey and the lives affected along the way.