Who said electing Judges was a bad idea?

MoleUK · 2018-11-08T13:44:50.765Z

Texas judge releases juvenile defendants after losing election

Hours after losing his bid for re-election along with his Republican colleagues, a Harris County, Texas judge released almost all the youthful defendants who appeared in front of him Wednesday, apparently saying it was what voters wanted.

Totally fine and normal reaction to losing.

Also highlights one of the more underlooked aspects of the mid-terms: Democrats won a lot of state-level races.

Smyrna · 2018-11-08T13:50:40.999Z

The American Civil Liberties Union is calling for an investigation into his actions,

This seems appropriate under the circumstances. If this judge acted improperly due to sour grapes over losing an election, it’s possible he should be disbarred.

CaughtInTheMiddle · 2018-11-08T14:02:44.808Z

Damn. What an ass.

Adam · 2018-11-08T14:12:02.456Z

MoleUK:

Texas judge releases juvenile defendants after losing election | Fox News

Totally fine and normal reaction to losing.

Also highlights one of the more underlooked aspects of the mid-terms: Democrats won a lot of state-level races.

Along those state level lines, Dems picked up seven governorships, a couple secretary of states, four attorney generals, flipped six state and house chambers. States where Dems have a trifecta of the governorship and the state legislatures went from 8 to 14. Still waiting on the final number of state legislative seats that Dems picked up.

BlueTex · 2018-11-08T14:19:14.877Z

Adam:

Along those state level lines, Dems picked up seven governorships, a couple secretary of states, four attorney generals, flipped six state and house chambers. States where Dems have a trifecta of the governorship and the state legislatures went from 8 to 14. Still waiting on the final number of state legislative seats that Dems picked up.

The Harris County GOP judicial candidates took a beating…

Bustle

19 Black Women Were Elected Judges In A Single Texas County During The 2018...

An election in Houston on Tuesday night resulted in a remarkable victory for black women judges in Texas. All 19 Harris County candidates won their elections, and their wins — and a memorable photo of them in their robes — have led to the internet…

Safiel · 2018-11-08T16:47:51.122Z

Whether Democrats win, as in Harris County or Republicans win, partisan judicial elections always stink. Hopefully the winners are qualified for the positions they have won and will handle their jobs in a non-partisan manner.

Unfortunately in Texas, many elected Judges, whether Republicans or Democrats, have come up short.

Hopefully, someday Texas will abandon the farce of partisan judicial elections

BlueTex · 2018-11-08T17:06:06.354Z

Safiel:

Whether Democrats win, as in Harris County or Republicans win, partisan judicial elections always stink. Hopefully the winners are qualified for the positions they have won and will handle their jobs in a non-partisan manner.

Unfortunately in Texas, many elected Judges, whether Republicans or Democrats, have come up short.

Hopefully, someday Texas will abandon the farce of partisan judicial elections

I absolute agree… When I voted earlier in the week there were several judges on the ballot. I think we all know how I made the choice…

Safiel · 2018-11-08T17:29:00.354Z

BlueTex:

Safiel:

Whether Democrats win, as in Harris County or Republicans win, partisan judicial elections always stink. Hopefully the winners are qualified for the positions they have won and will handle their jobs in a non-partisan manner.

Unfortunately in Texas, many elected Judges, whether Republicans or Democrats, have come up short.

Hopefully, someday Texas will abandon the farce of partisan judicial elections

I absolute agree… When I voted earlier in the week there were several judges on the ballot. I think we all know how I made the choice…

Ultimately, I would hope all States would move to merit selection for judges.

Tilly_jow · 2018-11-08T21:03:14.274Z

It’s Texass, the home of guns and irrational behavior, what do you expect.

JackStraw · 2018-11-08T21:18:02.077Z

I blame New York

WuWei · 2018-11-08T21:40:26.101Z

Good. Too many in prison. Prison industrial complex. For profit.

MoleUK · 2018-11-08T21:43:09.395Z

WuWei:

Good. Too many in prison. Prison industrial complex. For profit.

Double win then, since Devlin appears to have sent more than a few there.

https://www.washingtonpost.com/nation/2018/11/08/gop-judge-releases-juvenile-defendants-after-election-loss-obviously-what-voters-wanted/?utm_term=.e0940134cafd

“Devlin and another juvenile court judge in the county, John Phillips, also a Republican, were responsible for more than one-fifth of the minors sent to juvenile prisons in the state in 2017, the Houston Chronicle found during an investigation in October. Counting another juvenile court judge’s rulings with those of Devlin and Phillips, about 96 percent of the children locked up were minorities, the Chronicle reported.”

WuWei · 2018-11-08T21:46:52.878Z

Yep. Balance restored.

Safiel · 2018-11-08T22:17:46.231Z

Tilly_jow:

It’s Texass, the home of guns and irrational behavior, what do you expect.

I should note that New York State and my own State of Pennsylvania both have judiciaries that are as equally ****** up, if not more ****** than Texas’.

Here in Pennsylvania, we have had many judicial scandals, both in Republican and Democratic areas that came from elected Judges. We have had major Supreme Court scandals. We had two Judges not far from my home that were arrested in the infamous “Kids for Cash” scandal. There was an entire municipal court abolished in Philadelphia because it had become a den of thieves.

New York is obviously a Democratic stronghold and Pennsylvania is predominantly Democratic these days.

The point being that partisan judicial elections lead to incompetency and corruption, regardless of which party dominates.

Tilly_jow · 2018-11-08T22:26:50.338Z

Makes me feel better about living in CA, or maybe I just never hear about them here.

Safiel · 2018-11-08T22:31:26.202Z

Tilly_jow:

Makes me feel better about living in CA, or maybe I just never hear about them here.

California uses a modified form of merit selection at the appellate level and yes/no retention elections.

Judges of the Superior Court are elected in NON-partisan elections, which, while not good, are still a great improvement over partisan elections.

That is why you don’t see as much scandal.

PeterGriffin · 2018-11-08T22:42:12.734Z

MoleUK:

Totally fine and normal reaction to losing.

Also highlights one of the more underlooked aspects of the mid-terms: Democrats won a lot of state-level races.

What’s even funnier is in the weeks leading up to the election you couldn’t turn on the radio without hearing ads like “Elect Republican judges, it doesn’t matter what their names are, just vote for Republican judges because they follow the law unlike those scurrilous Democrats”.

fathom · 2018-11-08T22:47:49.099Z

Republicans make better decisions than Democrats. I think it’s unfair to the voters when they’re denied the knowledge of what political party a potential judge belongs to. How are we going to know the judge is going to follow the law if we don’t know if they’re a Republican or a Democrat?

Tilly_jow · 2018-11-08T23:18:25.488Z

fathom:

Republicans make better decisions than Democrats. I think it’s unfair to the voters when they’re denied the knowledge of what political party a potential judge belongs to. How are we going to know the judge is going to follow the law if we don’t know if they’re a Republican or a Democrat?

Turn down the talk radio.