Iowa Court of Appeals Chief Judge David Danilson of Pleasant Hill will retire Jan. 4 after a decade as an appellate court judge and more than 30 years as a jurist, according to a release. Danilson was born in Perry and raised on a farm north of Woodward. He earned his bachelor’s degree from Iowa State University in 1976. He graduated from Creighton University School of Law in 1979. During seven years in private practice, he served as judicial hospital referee and judicial magistrate. He was appointed to the district associate bench in the 2nd Judicial District of Iowa in 1987. He was appointed to the district court bench in 1997 and served two years as assistant chief district judge for the district until his appointment to the court of appeals. He was selected chief judge of the Iowa Court of Appeals in December 2013. Danilson is married and has five children. He plans to continue to serve as a senior judge for the court of appeals. Gov. Kim Reynolds will select a replacement from a list of three nominees the State Judicial Nominating Commission will submit upon Danilson’s retirement.