judgesonmerit.org » Lynn Marks

Tell House Judiciary Committee Members We Want a Hearing!

Lynn Marks — Fri, 30 May 2008 14:25:53 +0000

Calling all supporters of Merit Selection: We need your help!

As you know, changing the way Pennsylvania selects its appellate judges is a lengthy process. Right now, to keep moving forward, HB 2488 needs to be heard in the Judiciary Committee.

Please contact the members of the House Judiciary Committee. Ask them for a hearing on HB 2488, and ask them to support Merit Selection of appellate judges in Pennsylvania so that Pennsylvanians will have the opportunity to vote on this important subject in a constitutional referendum.

The members of the House Judiciary Committee are listed below. Click on the their names to obtain their contact information.

Majority:

Rep. Thomas Caltagirone, D-Berks, Chairman
Rep. Daylin Leach, D-Montgomery, Secretary
Rep. Kathy Manderino, D-Montgomery, Subcommittee Chairman on Family Law
Rep. John Pallone, D-Armstrong, Subcommittee Chairman on Crime and Corrections
Rep. Don Walko, D-Allegheny, Subcommittee Chairman on Courts
Rep. Lisa Bennington, D-Allegheny
Rep. Dan Frankel, D-Allegheny
Rep. Harold James, D-Philadelphia
Rep. Deberah Kula, D-Fayette
Rep. Bryan Lentz, D-Delaware
Rep. Joseph Petrarca, D-Armstrong
Rep. Sean Ramaley, D-Allegheny
Rep. Greg Vitali, D-Delaware
Rep. Chelsa Wagner, D-Allegheny
Rep. Jesse White, D-Allegheny
Rep. Jewell Williams, D-Philadelphia

Minority

Rep. Ron Marsico, R-Dauphin, Chairman
Rep. Tom Creighton, R-Lancaster, Subcommittee Chariman on Courts
Rep. Will Gabig, R-Cumberland, Subcommittee Chairman on Crime and Corrections
Rep. Glenn Grell, R-Cumberland, Subcommittee Chairman on Family Law
Rep. Craig Dally, R-Northampton
Rep. John Evans, R-Crawford
Rep. Kate Harper, R-Montgomery
Rep. Beverly Mackereth, R-York
Rep. Carl Mantz, R-Berks
Rep. Bernie O’Neill, R-Buck
Rep. Tina Pickett, R-Bradford
Rep. Todd Rock, R-Franklin
Rep. Katie True, R-Lancaster

Merit Selection On the Airwaves

Lynn Marks — Mon, 19 May 2008 14:15:54 +0000

This week, you can listen to both PMC Chair Bob Heim and PMC/PMCAction Associate Director Shira Goodman talk about Merit Selection with members of the Commonwealth Foundation. You can watch a video of Heim ‘s presentation to the Commonwealth Foundation’s Policy and Principles lunch on May 14. And you can listen to Goodman discussing Merit Selection with Matt Brouillette on his radio program The Box, which aired May 17.

More information on pending legislation can be found here.

Rep. Shapiro Tells Constituents “We Need Merit Selection”

Lynn Marks — Mon, 12 May 2008 17:15:27 +0000

This weekend, State Representative and Deputy Speaker Josh Shapiro (D -153) held a town meeting for his constituents. Shapiro identified Merit Selection of appellate judges as a critical reform for Pennsylvania. He explained why judges are different from other public officials and why it makes sense to use a different process to select them.

Representative Shapiro answered constituent questions about the pending Merit Selection proposal and invited PMC/PMCAction’s Shira Goodman to provide information about judicial selection in Pennsylvania and other states.

We thank Representative Shapiro for his strong support of Merit Selection and his co-sponsorship of House Bill 2488 & House Bill 2386. H.B. 2488 is the first step toward letting the people of Pennsylvania decide how we should choose appellate court judges.

Overheard at the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference

Lynn Marks — Sun, 27 Apr 2008 14:40:57 +0000

Yesterday, PMC Associate Director Shira Goodman made a presentation about Merit Selection to the Pennsylvania Leadership Conference. Goodman spoke on a panel dedicated to The Future of Reform in Pennsylvania and opened her remarks by saying “I’m here to talk to you about why we believe it’s time for Pennsylvanians to decide how they want to pick their appellate judges.” The presentation about the benefits of Merit Selection was well-received, and is being broadcast on the Pennsylvania Cable Network.

You can find more coverage on the conference in Philadelphia’s The Bulletin newspaper.

UPDATE: Videos of the conference speakers and panels are now available.

Don’t Be Misled by Anti-Merit Rhetoric

Lynn Marks — Tue, 01 Apr 2008 17:30:03 +0000

We think Merit Selection is the best way to choose appellate judges, and we think it would be a good system for Pennsylvania. But we don’t want to impose a Merit Selection system on the people. We want to present the proposal to the voters of Pennsylvania, and let them decide.

Critics like to accuse Merit Selection supporters of trying to “take away [the] right to vote for judges.” It’s a scare tactic, and it ignores reality. No one wants to take anything away from the public, and no one can change the way we pick appellate judges unless the people of Pennsylvania vote to do so.

Changing the way Pennsylvania selects appellate judges requires an amendment to the state constitution. No amount of legislative action or advocacy by Merit Selection supporters can make that happen. The only way to amend the state constitution is to let the people vote in a public referendum, a yes or no vote on whether or not to change the way we pick appellate judges.

That is what the current Merit Selection campaign is aiming for. We are ready to put this issue to the ultimate test, by giving the voters their chance to decide.

It’s also telling that opponents of Merit Selection fail to notice the retention election component of the proposal. Every appellate judge appointed under the plan will face a statewide retention vote after four years on the bench. If the judge is retained, he or she will serve for a 10 year term, with another retention election at the end of each term.

The retention election component preserves the right of the the people to observe each judge in action, and to decide whether that judge should stay on the bench. The public voice, and the public vote, will still be important to the process under Merit Selection.

We understand that changing the way a branch of government is chosen is a serious matter. This is even more true when it involves moving away from a purely electoral system. But don’t be fooled. Only the voters of Pennsylvania can make this change happen. No one can take away the elective system, and no one can force Merit Selection on the people. The people have to vote for it.

We are not afraid to let the people vote and decide this critical issue. We think it’s time for the people to determine whether our current system is working or if there’s a better way.