Don't Be Misled
All
counties in California must have at least two superior court judges. The actual number is decided by the size of
the county. Calaveras has two; Los
Angeles County has over 400. The vast
majority of judges are originally appointed.
Our presiding judge John E. Martin was appointed in 1995. Judge Hugh K. Swift was appointed last year.
The
appointment process is grueling. To be
considered, an applicant must have practiced law in California for at least ten
years. After filling out the necessary
paper work, each applicant is thoroughly evaluated by the Commission on
Judicial Nominees Evaluation (JNE). The
commission is a non-partisan agency of the State Bar of California, an
administrative arm of the California Supreme Court.
The
commission considers an applicant’s broad legal experience, intellectual
capacity, impartiality, community respect, commitment to equal justice and
judicial temperament. They send
questionnaires to all of the attorneys and judges listed in the application, at
least 60 professional references, and to randomly selected members of the local
legal community. After receiving responses to the questionnaires, the
Commission interviews the applicant and makes a recommendation.
By
state law the governor cannot appoint a judge without the commission’s
recommendation. This is to make sure
only qualified judges are appointed.
Other
judicial candidates running for office do not have to go through a rigorous
evaluation process.
Judge
Hugh Swift did go through this process and received the JNE’s
recommendation. At no time in the
interview was his political affiliation discussed.
Understanding
the thoroughness of this vetting, 25 superior court judges from throughout the
state, including Judge Martin and Judge Mewhinney, have encouraged residents of
Calaveras County to vote for Judge Hugh Swift.
Bob
Reagan
Murphys
