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Old 07-27-2007, 08:50 PM   #9
BlueK
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Quote:
Originally Posted by DirtyHippieUTE View Post
Almost never....

We just had a debate here at U of I about judges being elected vs. appointed for life. One of the representatives from the pro-election camp cited some seriously disturbing statistics about how many federal judges have ever been removed from the bench or even censured.

I wish I could cite the statistics but it was like 1/10th of a percent.

Unless it is an election year you REALLY have to screw the pooch to get kicked off the bench.
one compromise would be to appoint for a term. Then re-appoint. In Texas we elect judges and I really don't like it. For one thing it's very hard to make an informed decision as a voter. For another, it becomes a political office and it wouldn't be too hard to buy influence with campaign contributions. That's fine for legislators, IMO, but not for judges because they should be impartial. How would you like to be in court knowing your opponent gave the judge a massive campaign contribution? A judge is still human.
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