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Ability or confirmability?
From Arthur J. Inman
Regarding your editorial on popular election of judges (Hearsay, ISBA Bar News, December), I offer the following comments.
1. Your points about the deficiencies of popular election of judges are well-taken. The ability to raise money to run in a popular election is not necessarily indicative of judicial temperament and skills.
2. The Chicago Federation of Labor may be using questionable criteria in deciding whom to endorse in Cook County judicial elections.
However, their standards are no more unrelated to judicial competence than those of, say, NARAL or NOW, or many other well-funded special interest groups who demand to know, in advance of any case or controversy, how a Supreme Court nominee will vote on the one issue that they pursue.
3. Confirmability thus becomes as much a factor in non-democratic judicial selection as judicial ability. Qualified judicial candidates who become judges do so in spite of the best efforts of the well-funded special interest groups.
And many qualified candidates drop out of the process for reasons completely unrelated to fitness for the job.
4. It is clear that non-democratic selection of judges has no more to do with judicial ability than democratic electoral selection.
I prefer to have a part in the process with my fellow citizens rather than turn judicial selection over to the likes of Kim Gandy, Ralph Neas and Nan Aaron.
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Peoria attorney Arthur Inman is a member of the ISBA Human Rights Section Council and a past chair of its predecessor, the Individual Rights and Responsibilities Section Council.
Baseball fan cheers
From James M. Wexstten
The article on the Bottomley-Ruffing-Schalk Museum (ISBA Bar News, January, page 12) was fun reading, as I grew up in Nokomis.
The building next to the museum that burned was previously owned by my parents. It housed my mom's dress shop, and we lived upstairs.
I grew up with Red Ruffing's nephews and have fond memories of baseball in Nokomis. Thanks for the memory.
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James Wexstten is a judge in the 2nd Circuit, president of the Illinois Judges Association and a member of the ISBA Committee on Judicial Advisory Polls.
What's your opinion?
ISBA members are invited to submit thoughtful commentary on legal issues or changes in the practice and the profession for publication, within limits of space and taste. Letters to the editor and reviews of law-related books also are welcome.
Copy may be sent by facsimile to the ISBA Bar News editor at (312) 726-1422, by e-mail to sanderson@isba.org, or by mail to the ISBA Bar News, Chicago Regional Office, Suite 900, 20 S. Clark St., Chicago 60603.