The Roanoke Times issued an editorial today about the state of Virginia's judiciary and the systemic problems inherent in Virginia's selection process. The Roanoke Times' take on the problem is this -
"Judges are beholden to lawmakers for getting and keeping their jobs. That system is broken and should be fixed"
See the editorial at http://www.roanoke.com/editorials/wb/174080
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We can wait for the GA to relinquish its authority to appoint -- and reappoint -- judges or we can move to put pressure on our governor to help us begin to give the public more judge selection input (via “nominating commissions” or better yet “retention elections,” for example) through an “executive order” to place a referendum question concerning a constitutional amendment on the ballot. Such a question might read:
ReplyDelete“Should the Constitution of Virginia be amended to change the method of re-appointing state judges from confirmation by the legislature to retention election by the voters?”
I understand, from information at the State Board of Elections website, that any governing body in Virginia has the authority to put a referendum question on the ballot.
I also understand, from information at the American Judicature Society website, that “judicial nomination commissions” can be established by executive order; the AJS even provides model language for an executive order process to establish such commissions in its MODEL JUDICIAL SELECTION PROVISIONS (Revised 2008). It seems to me that if an executive order can establish nominating commissions then an executive order should be able to establish retention elections.
Senior Advisor to Governor Kaine, Mark Rubin, wrote me back on 22 April 2009 to say he was “not aware of any provision of law that would give the Governor the authority through an executive order to place a referendum question concerning a constitutional amendment on the ballot.”
I owe Mr. Rubin an answer. (And I would like to encourage readers of this message to send their comments to Rubin.) Could he be wrong? I wonder.
I really think the governor needs to intervene on our behalf because change is urgently needed and there is no way Del. Albo and the rest will ever give up their power to control our judiciary voluntarily.
By the way, earlier this year I created 2 blogspots to receive and publish citizen viewpoints regarding judge retention elections in Virginia,
http://yes-judge-retention-election-va.blogspot.com/,
And,
http://no-judge-retention-election-va.blogspot.com/.
We can always collect signatures to get a ballot question going by knocking on doors.
[ SOURCE: http://mommygobyebye-virginia.blogspot.com/2009/05/referendumtime-dumb-disgusting-outright.html ]
~Veronique Wyvell
the Mommy Go Bye Bye blog
Judge's need to look at the evidence not at who the attorney is or the name of the attorney - When they play GOD they need to do it by the evidence!
ReplyDeleteVirginia Law The Dirty Little Secret of Jerome/ Jerry Heckman and Ilona Ely Freedman Grenadier Heckman can be found at : http://valaw2010.blogspot.com/2010/11/facts-about-mismanagement-of-sonia.html
The Circuit Court of Alexandria
The VSB
The JIRK - all are Horrid!