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Judge Shenker is the head of Psi Division. He first appeared in 2000 AD prog 457 (1986). Originally with hair, he became bald in later strips.

Fictional character biography[]

Shenker was appointed head of Psi-Division by Chief Judge McGruder in 2108, following the death in action of his predecessor, Judge Omar. Shenker took Omar's seat on the Council of Five, Mega-City One's highest government body. His first council meeting was eventful: blaming herself for Omar's death, McGruder decided to resign. Three other members of the Council urged her to stay, insisting that she was not at fault. Only Shenker spoke in favour of her decision to resign. His opinion was greeted with derision by his three colleagues, but McGruder dismissed them from office and from the Council. Her final act as chief judge was to appoint four new councillors, at a stroke promoting Shenker from the Council's most junior member to its most senior. In this exalted position Shenker was influential in deciding the outcome of the new Council's choice of Judge Silver to succeed McGruder as chief judge. This was to be the last occasion on which the Council of Five would choose a chief judge.[1]

Shenker was one of the few who knew that Dredd had taken the Long Walk in 2112 and been replaced by the clone Judge Kraken; he was a confidant of Silver's, who was worried about his decision.[2] Shortly after, Shenker was consulted by Silver when Kraken reported the arrival of the Sisters of Death; he reported that Psi-Division believed there was a supernatural incursion but they were unable to get a clear fix due to ongoing "psionic flux".[3] Soon afterwards, Judge Agee had a vision of the coming Necropolis and Shenker held a division meeting to discuss the issue – mid-meeting, they became aware that Agee had been captured by the Sisters and Shenker called in Kraken (her last partner) to grill him for information.[4] Unfortunately, this came too late to stop the Necropolis and Shenker was one of those mind-controlled by the Sisters.

McGruder later returned to office for a second term, resigning again in 2116. Since she had previously suspended the Council of Five, and her successor had not yet been chosen, she appointed an Interim Council of three judges to run the city until a new chief judge could be sworn in. By now the city's most senior judge, Shenker was an obvious choice for this ruling body. When the new chief judge re-established the Council of Five, Shenker regained his old seat.[5]

However Psi Division's performance was declining, and it was no longer getting the results it had once boasted of. In the past, psi judges with precognitive abilities had been able to predict future crimes and catastrophes, enabling Justice Department to take pre-emptive action to avoid disaster. But Shenker's people (outside of one cadet) conspicuously failed to foresee the calamitous Second Robot War which wreaked massive devastation across the city and almost resulted in the end of the Judges' rule. After fourteen years on the Council of Five, Chief Judge Hershey asked Shenker to resign from his position on the Council to focus on improving his division's performance, a development that Shenker had not needed precognitive powers to expect.[6]

The problem is that Psi Division has always relied on a few star operators, many of whom have died or been incapacitated under Shenker's administration – including Anderson temporarily quitting as a Judge and later being in a two-year coma, the death of Fortean Events director Doctor Rickard in Tibet,[7] most of a six-strong team killed or damaged in a 2126 rescue mission in Anderson's mind,[8] and the 2127 possession of Judge Karyn. The need to recover Psi-Division's effectiveness from this led to an extreme decision by Shenker to drug and deliberately injure a prisoner, Gaia Innocenti, in order to forcibly use her as a precog.[9]

References[]

  1. 2000 AD #457
  2. Prog 671
  3. Prog 675
  4. 2000 AD #678-81
  5. 2000 AD #915
  6. 2000 AD #1178
  7. Prog 711: "Shamballa"
  8. Judge Dredd Megazine 226
  9. 2000 AD #1422


Judge Dredd
Main Characters Judge Dredd - Judge Hershey - Judge Anderson - Judge Beeny - Judge Buell - Galen DeMarco - Dirty Frank - Judge Edgar - Chief Judge Fargo - Judge Francisco - Judge Giant - Judge Goodman - Judge Griffin - Judge Guthrie - Judge Janus - Judge Karyn - Judge McGruder - Judge Niles - Judge Rico - Judge Shenker - Judge Silver - Judge Solomon - Judge Volt - Detective-Judge Armitage - Inspector Shimura - Devlin Waugh - Johnny Woo - Judge Larter - Judge Jack - Judge Agee - Judge Bennett - Judge Castillo - Judge Dekker - Judge Goon - Deputy Cheif Judge Herriman - Judge Kruger - Judge Munn - Judge Perrier - Judge Prager - Judge Minty - Detective-Judge Steel - Detective Judge Trant - Judge Kazan - Chief Judge Ohno - Judge-Inspector Akio Anaba - Judge Marshall Lawson
Recurring Villains Angel Gang - Mean Machine Angel - Elmer Angel - Junior Angel - Link Angel - Judge Bachmann - Oola Blint - President Booth - Judge Cal - Dark Judges - Rico Dredd - Armon Gill - Judge Grice - Morton Judd - Kleggs - Judge Kraken - Mechanismo - Stan Lee - Marty Zpok - PJ Maybe - Nero Narcos - Orlock - Shojun the Warlord - Judge Sinfield - Call-Me-Kenneth - Mr. Moonie - Murd the Oppresor - Owen Krysler - Don Uggie Apelino - Captain Skank - Father Earth - Kazan - Bulgarin - General Blood'n'Guts - Satanus - Satan - Fink Angel - Ratty - Rhode Island Red - Phobia - Nausia - America Jara - Cesare - Judge Mortis - Judge Fear - Judge Death - Judge Fire - Manners - Ramses - Trapper Hag - Sabbat - Wu Yang - Yin Mie - Randolph Whitely - Judge Choke - Judge Sleep - Judge Sludge - Judge Burroghs - Judge Fistula - Judge Skinner - Judge Stigmata - The Seven Samurai - Rex Peters - Slocum - Kenny Who? - Nosferatu - Grampus - Heavy Metal Kid - Ratty - Elvis - The Warlords - DeGaulle - The Joker - The Scarecrow - The Riddler - Arnold Wesker - Lobo - Judge Kurten - Pink Eyes - Aimee Nixon - Mr. Bones - Effil Drago San - Bella Bagley - Dune Sharks - Xenomorphs - Ueno Hama - Raptaurs - The Explosive Man - Judge Sherman - Ankhhor - President Clinton Box - Pamelina Oswin
Other Characters Chopper - Vienna Dredd - Fergee - Yassa Povey - Jacob Sardini - Walter the Wobot - Henry Ford - Spikes Harvey Rotten - Tweak - Tony Tubbs - Otto Sump - Mrs. Gunderson - Sensitive Klegg - Jack Point - Maria - Benneet Beeny - Grunwalder - Old Joe Blind - Max Normal - Toots Milloy - Mr. Harke - Mr. Burr - Jim Grubb - Dave the Orangutan - Nimrod - The Creep - Johnny Alpha - Wulf Sternhammer - The Fargo Clan - Randy Fargo - Jubal Fargo - Hocus Ritter - Batman - Harry Henson
Storylines America - The Apocalypse War - Block Mania - City of the Damned - The Cursed Earth - Day of Chaos - Democracy - The Doomsday Scenario - The Hunting Party - The Judge Child - Judgement Day - Mechanismo - Mutants - Necropolis - Origins - Oz - The Pit - The Robot Wars - Tour of Duty Trifecta - Wilderlands
Crossovers Judge Dredd vs. Aliens - Judgement on Gotham - Predator vs. Judge Dredd - Mars Attacks Judge Dredd
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