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Sunday, April 05, 2009
Ind. Courts - More on proposal to end merit selection of St. Joe County judges
The Indiana Senate Judiciary Committee will likely vote this Wednesday on whether to send House Bill 1491 to the full Senate. Today Jack Colwell, a colmnist for the South Bend Tribune, has an opinion piece that concludes:
[HB 1491, a] bill already passed in the Indiana House would inject a strong dose of politics into the selection of judges in [St. Joe Superior] court. It would repeal a system instituted as needed reform to curtail political considerations and provide instead for election of the judges.The way it works now, a committee of prominent citizens and members of the legal profession selects finalists for the bench, with the governor making the final decision on an appointee. Voters later can retain or remove an appointee, but judges are not in competitive election battles for re-election.
Those interested in serving on the bench don't have to scrounge for campaign contributions, make political promises, line up support from special interests and political bosses or make negative attacks on an opponent. They just have to convince the blue ribbon committee that they have the background, integrity and ability to be a judge.
The committee usually has submitted an impressive list. And governors of both parties have made choices of judges who have for the most part served ably.
Opponents of this merit selection system say it's not democratic, that voters should pick judges and then toss them out if they don't like their decisions. Sounds good. Kind of like the "reform" through which members of the South Bend School Board were elected rather than appointed. The board became a laughingstock, except what it did to education is no laughing matter.
While the repeal would provide for "nonpartisan" election of judges, the "nonpartisan" part is nonsense. Only Democrats with support from traditional Democratic power bases would be likely to be elected in St. Joseph County.
Those who want the repeal aren't looking for judges with greater independence and determination to strictly follow the law. They are looking for judges they can sway to follow what they think the law should provide.
It's easy if they go after a judge to find some decision that can be portrayed as ridiculous or harmful.
Only St. Joseph and Lake counties have appointed judges. Opponents say what's good for the other 90 counties should be good for St. Joe. Not necessarily. Not if St. Joe has a better system.
It does. And that system shouldn't be turned into something that could provide material for a Grisham novel.
Posted by Marcia Oddi on April 5, 2009 02:48 PM
Posted to Indiana Courts