Pitchfork Rebellion tells General Assembly to Pitch the idea of re-appointing Judge Gaylord Finch, Jr.

February 23, 2009

To Whom It May Concern:

Dave Albo wants you to fall for the oldest trick in the book – he’s telling you to re-appoint Judge Gaylord Finch and that it’s no big deal because Judge Finch says his “intent” is to retire on December 31, 2009. We’ve attached his “retirement” letter.

Judge Finch has absolutely no intention of retiring before the end of another eight year term! Dave Albo is trying to sneak Judge Finch back on the bench even though he is unqualified, has engaged in brazen judicial misconduct and no amount of remedial legal education would be sufficient for him. What’s worse, Dave Albo has admitted to VA Lawyers Weekly that he struck a deal with Judge Finch (see attached 2/20/09 article).

It is unacceptable to put Judge Finch back on the bench for any length of time because he is unfit. Our Constitution only allows for an eight year term. There is no way to re-appoint a judge for five months. Interestingly, Dave Albo tried to reassure the local delegation that if Judge Finch did not retire at the end of this year, there would be grounds for a valid JIRC complaint on the basis of his lying to the Legislature.

Judge Finch already lied to the legislators during his second judicial interview on January 10, 2009. That alone should be grounds enough not to re-appoint him. Since Judge Finch lied to the legislators once, what is to prevent him from doing so again? Judge Finch simply should not be taken at his word. He simply cannot be trusted. Don’t let Judge Finch and Dave Albo take you for a ride.

We have a solution to this problem – it’s straight out of President Obama’s political playbook. What you do not vote for cannot hurt you. If you want to be politically ubiquitous like Pres. Obama, all you have to do is NOT show up for the committee vote and NOT show up for the floor vote on Judge Finch either. This way, Judge Finch does not get re-appointed and you don’t get hurt politically.