Sunday, May 8, 2016

Alabama follows Wyoming - and a new trend in judicial discipline is born, taking state judges off the bench, from low to high rank, for not following precedents of the U.S. Supreme Court

In an interesting move, Alabama suspended its Chief Judge Roy Moore for defying the precedent of the U.S. Supreme Court regarding constitutionality of the gay marriage.

In that move, Alabama is following the example of the State of Wyoming where the judicial disciplinary board took off the bench Magistrate Judge Ruth Neely for doing the same as Alabama Chief Judge Roy Moore did - defying the U.S. Supreme Court precedent regarding constitutionality of gay marriage.

With the only exception that in Wyoming a low-ranking judge was taken off the bench, while in Alabama they dared to suspend and start removal proceedings against the Chief State judge - for defying a U.S. Supreme Court precedent.

Meanwhile, I have a long list of judges in New York state and federal court defying a long list of U.S. Supreme Court precedents, as I am sure, is happening in other states.

Those precedents they defy are not about gay marriage.

They are about retaliation for contents of protected speech, right to work and due process.

Since the tendency started, I suggest constitutional referendums in New York and other states replacing lawyer- and judge-controlled disciplinary boards for judicial discipline by citizen panels composed of citizens without any professional, social or familial ties to the legal profession or the judiciary.

Such panels can, for free, without any budgets, start reviewing non-compliance of the state judiciaries, with mandatory precedents of the U.S. Supreme Court on important civil rights issues.

I am sure people will be enthusiastic about the topic and no additional infusions from the budget will be needed for such an endeavor.

Which state will be the first?

I will surely ask the NYS Commission for Judicial Conduct to revise some of their decisions not to discipline certain judges, in view of the encouraging examples of judicial disciplinary boards in Wyoming and Alabama.

Way to go!


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