judgesonmerit.org

Pennsylvanians for Modern Courts and PMCAction took our campaign for Merit Selection of appellate judges to the State Capitol in Harrisburg today. We held a press conference in the Capitol Rotunda, featuring Senator Jane Earll and Representatives David Steil and Josh Shapiro, all of whom will be sponsoring Merit Selection bills in the state legislature. Senator Anthony Williams, another lead sponsor, wasn’t able to attend the event. The event was moderated by Lynn A. Marks, Executive Director of PMC and PMCAction.

Standing with us to demonstrate support for changing the way we select appellate judges were representatives of the League of Women Voters of Pennsylvania, Common Cause Pennsylvania, Justice at Stake, ACLU of Pennsylvania, Pennsylvania Manufacturers Association, the Philadelphia Bar Association, the Philadelphia Bar Association, and the Commonwealth Foundation. These organizations are part of a steadily growing coalition in support of judicial selection reform.

We felt great excitement and energy today, and we’re really pleased with the response from the media and the public. If you’d like to see more about the presentation we made, and the benefits of a Merit Selection plan, take a look at the press kit materials.

The Associated Press’ coverage appearing in the Wilkes-Barre Times Leader noted “advocates for replacing Pennsylvania’s system of electing appellate judges with an appointive system launched a new effort Tuesday to convince the Legislature that change is needed.” Also reporting on the press conference were Philadelphia’s The Bulletin and The Pittsburgh Post Gazette, which noted that “State Sen. John Pippy thinks the state needs a better way to select judges for its appellate courts.”