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Through no fault of their own, voters have little basis upon which to identify the best candidate in a judicial campaign.
March 24
Would appointments be better? Is there a middle ground? Californians should be talking about it.
San Jose Mercury News: Another flawed judge raises question
It may be possible for Scott to recover and adopt appropriate courtroom behavior. He is intelligent and knows the law.
From the perspective of defendants, plaintiffs and attorneys, it's hard to say which of these cases is worse: an apparently clueless judge or a smart one who telegraphs bias.
When judicial vacancies occur midterm, the governor makes appointments. That has its own peril,Cheap Wholesale Jerseys, since political party can be a litmus test -- although local elections can be even costlier political exercises. Beyond that,Jerseys From China Online, however, applicants for appointments are thoroughly vetted on a range of judicial qualities. Some attorneys who run in local elections would not make it through the review for an appointment regardless of political party.
The latest example of conduct more likely to surface when judges are picked by popular election is that of newly elected Santa Clara County Superior Court Judge Stuart Scott, who is accused of violating the code of ethics on judicial conduct.
Most elected judges turn out fine, even if they weren't the best qualified candidate. People tend to grow into the office. But as a process for picking a professional for a position of such technical, nuanced requirements,Cheap Jerseys 2018, popular election is far from ideal.
The Commission on Judicial Performance may review Scott's conduct.
Scott's conduct reportedly ranged from eye-rolling in court to dissing the defense attorney in a private conversation with Deputy District Attorney Kelly Meeker. Mercury News staff writer Tracey Kaplan reported that Meeker told her supervisor about Scott's conduct, and District Attorney Jeff Rosen's office promptly followed its ethical obligation to report it to the Public Defender's Office and the presiding judge.
This was not the case with former Judge Diane Ritchie,Cheap Jerseys, who was elected in 2008 and unseated last fall by former prosecutor Matt Harris after this newspaper exposed Ritchie's general incompetence. The courts had struggled for six years to help her learn the job, and ultimately the county bar association declared her unqualified for re-election.
Elections are not a good way to choose judges because, unlike candidates for, say, city council,Cheap NFL Jerseys China, judicial prospects are prohibited from discussing issues that might come before them. It can be hard to get a handle on what they know and how they think. And personality traits that may charm voters do not necessarily equate to great judicial material. That was certainly the case in Ritchie's original race.
As to Scott's election last year — he was unopposed for the seat. That just makes it worse. There was no vetting, personality or otherwise,Wholesale China Jerseys, beyond the baseline rating of qualified by the county bar. He self-selected.
It's time California considered appointing rather than electing judges. |
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