Judicial Minds Share a Few Insights

PROVIDENCE — You could have predicted Abraham Lincoln. No one was shocked by Jesus or Thurgood Marshall. But Larry Bird came as a bit of a surprise.

During interviews last week, Judicial Nominating Commission member June Tow posed this question to candidates vying for a pair of state District Court seats: “If you could spend a day with any one person in history, who would it be? And why?”

Over the course of three days, the commission interviewed 14 candidates for the District Court vacancies created by the death of Judge Richard A. Gonnella and the retirement of Judge Patricia D. Moore. . . .

[W]hen asked to name someone he’d like to spend a day with, Stephen M. Isherwood, a Warwick Probate Court judge, didn’t hesitate. “Larry Joe Bird,” he said.

Isherwood, 47, of Warwick, said the former Boston Celtics star “is a lunch-pail kind of guy who goes above the call of duty. When you think of some of the adversity he faced and what he accomplished, it’s impressive.”

Details here from the Providence Journal-Bulletin.

Comments

[Bonnie Russell]

I like the sports analogy...but then, John Roberts also made one during his confirmation hearings and so far his "leadership" hasn't worked out real well as the courts continue to fling their support towards big business and away from the individual.

Yet, Americans continue to try.

Although the bad news is our government is broken, the good news is the public sector wants to fix it! See, www.USAjudges.com a site that restores transparency to government, since Congress continues to not clean its own back yard.

Nationally, ethical lapses persist - (USAjudges.com - no waiting which is helpful during elections years.)http://www.communityrights.org/Newsroom/crcInTheNews/WP04-18-06.asp

http://www.ajs.org/ethics/pdfs/When%20confidentiality%20ceases.pdfAs USAjudges.com demonstrates, a good government is a transparent one as the first thing judges did was to vote to make proceedings confidential.

and then made case law to remind citizens that judges really are above the law:

"Mitchell vs. McBride 944F.2D 229 "A judge will not be deprived of immunity because the action he took was in error, was done maliciously, or was in excess of his authority; rather he will be subject to liability only when he has acted in the clear absence of all jurisdiction.' The rule of judicial immunity applies even where the judge is accused of acting maliciously or corruptly…Sariello vs. Campbell 860 F. Supp. 54"

Remember the Nebraska judge who ruled "no prison" for 5'1" convicted child molester?http://www.journalstar.com/articles/2006/05/25/local/doc4474ed34cdca3829136003.txtUSAjudges.com discovered Judge Christine Cecava was no maverick judge. She served as past president of the Nebraska Judges Association and (get this!) on the 'Task Force' to protect children.http://www2.csc.edu/eyh/speaker/speaker2000.aspProtect children from whom? Her

CaliforniaFormer Judge Robert Klinehttp://www.metnews.com/articles/2007/klin022107.htm

Judge Wiatthttp://www.metnews.com/articles/2005/wiat021505.htm

We have to thank Americans for caring enough to make our own government transparent; because our senators so busy with war and presidential races continue not holding judges accountable.

Americans repairing America. It's a good thing.