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The question of electing judges or appointing judges has had a long bumpy road in Illinois history. Over the last Twenty years the voters of the state of Illinois have been asked several times to vote on the constitutional proposal changing the judicial selection process. And the debate is not over yet. There are many proposals currently in front of the Illinois General Assembly. If enacted will change the selection methods. Supporters of the current elective system are fighting to keep the public directly involved in choosing the judges.
Opponents of this method have proposed that judges are selected by a merit plan, in which a commission nominates candidates and presents a list of executive appointments. The american legal system depends on the use of judges. With the storm of controversy raging about weather judges should be elected or appointed, the future of our legal system may be effected. The root of the selection problem may be that it is impossible to separate law from politics.
The issue is simply this: What is the proper blend of political influence, and who or what group should exercise the political power to select judges? History From a historical perspective, the founders of our country held a succinct opinions on this issue (Barton 1). For example, two centuries ago when the colonist declared themselves independent from Great Britain and had a opportunity to create their own government, they promptly incorporated into America new and important judicial principles, of which the 1780 Massachusetts constitution was typical in declaring: All power residing originally in the people and being derived from them, the several magistrates and officers of government vested with authority - whether Legislative, Executive, or Judicial - are their substitutes and agents and are at all times accountable to them (1). The Framers feared tyranny from the judiciary more than from the other two branches, so they placed deliberate limitations on the judiciary (1). As a result, the Federalist Papers reported that under their plan, "the Judiciary is beyond comparison the weakest of the three departments of power and the general liberty of the people can never be endangered from that quarter (1).
As part of that plan, the Framers took care to ensure that judges were accountable to the people at all times (1). Although federal judges were appointed and did not face election, the Founders made certain that federal judges would be easily removable from office through impeachment, a procedure that today is widely misunderstood and rarely used (1). While the current belief is that a judge may be removed only for the commission of a criminal offense or the violation of a statutory law, it was not this way at the beginning (1). As Alexander Hamilton explained, "the practice of impeachments was a bridle" a way to keep judges accountable to the people.
And what did the Framers believe were impeachable offenses? According to Justice Joseph Story, a "Father of American Jurisprudence": The offenses to which the power of impeachment has been and is ordinarily applied... are what are aptly termed political offenses, growing out of personal misconduct, or gross neglect, or usurpation, or habitual disregard of the public interests (1). Methods of Selection The two basic methods used in the United States for selecting judges are appointment and and election (Kopecky 1). Elective methods may be either partisan or nonpartisan (1). In partisan elections the judicial candidate is nominated by a party and runs with that party identification (1).
In a nonpartisan election the judicial candidates are generally nominated in a nonpartisan primary and runs in the general election without a party label (1). Appointment methods used in other states differ on where the responsibility rests for the important decisions, they are made by either the governor, the legislature, or a judicial nominating commission (1). The method which uses the judicial nominating commission is generally referred to as a merit selection or the Missouri Plan (1). In 1940 Missouri became the first state to adopt a judicial nominating commission system (1). Most states use a combination of elections and appointments (1). The federal judiciary is selected by executive appointments (2).
The president makes all judicial appointments with the advice and consent of the U. S. Senate, But significant roles are played in the selection process by the senator of the president's party from the state in which the vacancy exists, the Justice Department and the American Bar Association (2). President Jimmy Carter has taken the first step in selecting U. S. Judges on merit by establishing the U.
S. Circuit Court Nominating Commission to propose candidates for the U. S. Court of Appeals (2). Illinois System Supreme court, appellate court and circuit court or trial judges are elected in Illinois by a partisan system (Kopecky 3). Candidates are placed on the ballot through a partisan primary or by petition and generally run with party identification and party support (3).
Once elected, judges are prohibited from engaging in political activities, and they seek reelection through a nonpartisan retention ballot (3). To remain in office, a judge must receive an affirmative vote from 60 per cent of the voters (3). Only two judges have been voted out of office since the retention system was established in 1964 (3). Supreme and appellate judges serve 10 -year terms, and circuit judges serve six-year terms (3). All associate circuit judges, approximately 40 per cent of the judges in Illinois, are appointed (3).
They serve four-year terms. The associate circuit judges are selected by secret ballot cast by the elected circuit judges (3). All associate circuit judges are attorneys and perform virtually the same duties as a circuit judge, but in most counties associate circuit judges are generally assigned to the more routine cases such as minor criminal matters, family law, probate and juvenile court cases (3). Dade County voters face a critical choice this coming election in determining how trial court judges will be selected (newswire 1). as stories emerge around the states of highly paid consultants to judicial candidates and questionable practices of judicial nominating commissions (1). Voters will have plenty to consider when facing the ballot question of how to select qualified circuit and county court judges (1).
To help voters prepaid for this election-day referendum, the American Bar Association and the American Judicature Society, with the assistance of Dade County College, are presenting two debates on judicial selection (1). Legislative Proposal There are six proposals now pending in the General Assembly to modify the partisan election system. Most of these proposals would lead to a constitutional amendment and a referendum by the general public (5)...
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Research essay sample on Should Judges Be Elected Or Appointed
