Longtime Lansing City Attorney James Smiertka passes away

Served under four mayors until retiring in 2024

THURSDAY, Sept. 4 — James D. Smiertka, who served as Lansing’s city attorney under four different mayors, died Aug. 22 in Grand Rapids.

Smiertka, 79, was appointed twice to lead the City Attorney’s Office. Then Mayor David Hollister selected him in 1994, and he continued under Hollister’s successor, Tony Benavides, until 2004. He returned in 2016 under then-Mayor Virg Bernero and continued under Mayor Andy Schor until retiring last year.

Visitation is scheduled for 10 a.m. Saturday, followed by a memorial service at 11 a.m. at Zaagman Memorial Chapel, 2800 Burton St. SE in Grand Rapids.

Smiertka earned a bachelor’s degree in business management from the University of Detroit and a law degree from the same institution’s law school. He practiced law for more than 50 years in both the public and private sectors.

Smiertka’s obituary described him as a devout Christian, saying, “His Bible was literally falling apart at the end of his life and though he cherished all of God’s word, the Psalms were where he lived.”

Smiertka served for 25 years on the board of Pregnancy Services of East Lansing, which worked with women with unplanned pregnancies.

“Jim was most satisfied outdoors, whether riding his tractor or tackling a project he’d dreamed up,” according to his obituary.

He is survived by his wife of 50 years, Linda, and their two daughters, Jennifer Koestner and Kathryn Miller, and four sons, Matthew, Timothy, Jeffrey, and Joshua, and eight grandchildren.