judgesonmerit.org

In letters to the editor this week in the Philadelphia Daily News, the League of Women Voters of Philadelphia and the Philadelphia Bar Association unequivocally state their support for Merit Selection of appellate judges. On behalf of the League, Melissa R. Hunsberger writes: “Merit selection advocates believe that judges should be chosen based upon their qualifications rather than their political connections and that in doing so judges are freed from political influence and thus promotes a fair and impartial judiciary.”

Kenneth Shear, Executive Director of the Philadelphia Bar Association notes, “[W]ith a new selection method in place, as 44 other states have shown, our judiciary might be populated not by the best fund-raisers, but truly the best and the brightest.”

We thank the League of Women Voters and the Philadelphia Bar Association for their ongoing support and plan to continue to work with them to bring before the people of Pennsylvania the question of how we should select appellate judges.

An editorial in today’s Philadelphia Inquirer outlines the benefits of Merit Selection and the problems caused by the mounting expenses involved in electing judges: “With so much cash flowing into statewide judicial elections, there is no time to waste in changing the way judges are selected for the appellate bench.” Explaining that the increasing costs of elections decreases public confidence in the courts, the editorial notes “And that’s not good for any democracy.”

The Philadelphia Inquirer today published a letter from PMC Board Chair Bob Heim about the benefits of merit selection. Heim pointed out the importance of eliminating money from the process of choosing appellate judges: “a merit system would eliminate the impression that justice – which is supposed to be blind – can have its eyes opened by million-dollar campaign contributions.”

Heim’s letter also pointed out that the public continues to participate in the selection process through its representation on the nominating commission and the periodic retention elections to determine if judges stay on the bench. Finally, Heim noted that Pennsylvania can only change the way we pick appellate judges if the public votes to do so.