Litigation

Merit Selection Backed in IN County

By Peter Hardin

Commissioners for Lake County, Indiana have voted in favor of a bill in the state legislature to permit the appointment of four judges who preside over the county division of Lake Superior Court.

“It takes some politics out of the courts and makes them more neutral,” said County Commissioner Roosevelt Allen, according to a  Post-Tribune article. The bill was carried in the legislature by a Democrat and by a Republican.

Voters currently elect the county division judges. Under the legislation, a commission would recommend candidates for appointment by the governor, and voters would go to the polls every six years to decide whether to keep a judge.

You can learn more about how appointment-and-retention systems work from a Justice at Stake issues page on the topic.

Full post as published by The Gavel on January 20, 2011 (boomark / email).