Post by Anja Nieser on Sept 13, 2006 16:49:40 GMT -5
Court of Criminal Appeals Recommendations----We recommend these judges in
the fall election
When it comes to uninspiring court contests, the statewide Court of
Criminal Appeals pretty much takes the cake.
3 Republican incumbents, none of whom deserves to be a shoo-in for
re-election. One Democrat and 2 Libertarians, none of whom could be
bothered to show up for an interview - or, in the case of the Democrat,
complete a questionnaire. At least incumbents have records, for better or
worse. Challengers don't, which makes the lack of responsiveness of these
challengers especially troubling.
Our recommendations? Republican incumbents Sharon Keller, Barbara Parker
Hervey and Charles Holcomb.
To be honest, we were looking for some new blood in Judge Keller's race
for presiding judge. We've believed for a long time that the court needs
to adopt a more cautious posture with regard to the death penalty, and
it's only recently that it seems to be inching that way. That's progress,
and we're pleased to see it, however incremental.
We urge Judge Keller, a 53-year-old Dallas native, to help move the court
in this direction. She should listen more to the centrists on the court.
Frankly, Democratic challenger J.R. Molina, a Fort Worth attorney, didn't
give us much of an alternative. In lieu of learning about him from him, we
contacted a raft of other folks for information, trusted legal experts
whose judgments seem sound, many of them Democrats. None professed to know
much about Mr. Molina, 59, though he's run for various offices several
times before, and nobody went strongly to bat for him.
Judge Hervey, 53, of San Antonio, didn't have a challenger in the primary
and drew only a perennial and uninspiring Libertarian candidate this fall,
Quanah Parker of Abilene, in the Place 7 contest.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment is the Place 8 race, which features
Judge Holcomb, 72, of Wimberley and Libertarian Dave Howard, 55, of Round
Rock. We declined to recommend Judge Holcomb in the March primaries, in
part because we view it as unwise for voters to invest in a candidate who
will have to resign during his term, as Judge Holcomb will when he hits
the mandatory retirement age of 75. Challenger Mr. Howard, however,
presented little choice.
Chalk up this set of contests as demonstrating a troubling lack of resolve
from Democrats. On many important judicial issues, including the death
penalty, the minority party in Texas says it merits a greater role. Fine.
It could start earning that role by fielding real challengers for the
Court of Criminal Appeals.
(source: Editorial, Dallas Morning News)
the fall election
When it comes to uninspiring court contests, the statewide Court of
Criminal Appeals pretty much takes the cake.
3 Republican incumbents, none of whom deserves to be a shoo-in for
re-election. One Democrat and 2 Libertarians, none of whom could be
bothered to show up for an interview - or, in the case of the Democrat,
complete a questionnaire. At least incumbents have records, for better or
worse. Challengers don't, which makes the lack of responsiveness of these
challengers especially troubling.
Our recommendations? Republican incumbents Sharon Keller, Barbara Parker
Hervey and Charles Holcomb.
To be honest, we were looking for some new blood in Judge Keller's race
for presiding judge. We've believed for a long time that the court needs
to adopt a more cautious posture with regard to the death penalty, and
it's only recently that it seems to be inching that way. That's progress,
and we're pleased to see it, however incremental.
We urge Judge Keller, a 53-year-old Dallas native, to help move the court
in this direction. She should listen more to the centrists on the court.
Frankly, Democratic challenger J.R. Molina, a Fort Worth attorney, didn't
give us much of an alternative. In lieu of learning about him from him, we
contacted a raft of other folks for information, trusted legal experts
whose judgments seem sound, many of them Democrats. None professed to know
much about Mr. Molina, 59, though he's run for various offices several
times before, and nobody went strongly to bat for him.
Judge Hervey, 53, of San Antonio, didn't have a challenger in the primary
and drew only a perennial and uninspiring Libertarian candidate this fall,
Quanah Parker of Abilene, in the Place 7 contest.
Perhaps the biggest disappointment is the Place 8 race, which features
Judge Holcomb, 72, of Wimberley and Libertarian Dave Howard, 55, of Round
Rock. We declined to recommend Judge Holcomb in the March primaries, in
part because we view it as unwise for voters to invest in a candidate who
will have to resign during his term, as Judge Holcomb will when he hits
the mandatory retirement age of 75. Challenger Mr. Howard, however,
presented little choice.
Chalk up this set of contests as demonstrating a troubling lack of resolve
from Democrats. On many important judicial issues, including the death
penalty, the minority party in Texas says it merits a greater role. Fine.
It could start earning that role by fielding real challengers for the
Court of Criminal Appeals.
(source: Editorial, Dallas Morning News)