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Thursday, October 14, 2004

Indiana Courts - Running for Judge in Lake County

"Judge gets unfavorable rating" is the headline to this story this morning in the Gary Post-Tribune:


MERRILLVILLE — The Lake County Bar Association on Wednesday released an annual judge assessment in which, for the first time since 2000, a majority of respondents recommended a judge be removed from the bench.

Lake Superior Court Judge James Danikolas received an overall unfavorable rating from 60 percent of the 263 Lake County attorneys who responded on his competence, temperament and character in the survey.

The last Lake County judge who received an unfavorable review from the bar association, Judge Joan Kouros, was removed from the bench Tuesday by the State Supreme Court.

Danikolas, the chief judge in Civil Division 3 in the Gary Courthouse, is facing a disciplinary charge for allegedly firing a magistrate as a form of retaliation in 2003.

The Munster Times has two stories today. this one reports the same facts as the Tribune story; this one is headlined "Last judge lawyers nixed was booted off bench Tuesday: Joan Kouros was retained by voters in 2000 despite unfavorable recommendation," and reports:
Perhaps by coincidence, the results of the 2004 Judicial Qualifications Survey were released Wednesday -- one day after the Indiana Supreme Court booted Joan Kouros from her Lake Criminal Court bench.

Until Wednesday, Kouros was the last judge lawyers recommended not retaining in their annual survey.

Former Gov. Evan Bayh appointed Kouros to the bench in 1997, and the public got their first chance to vote to retain her in the 2000 election.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 14, 2004 08:02 AM
Posted to Indiana Courts