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The Urban League of Philadelphia supports Merit Selection of Pennsylvania’s appellate court judges because the current system of partisan elections has failed to provide diversity on the bench.  The Urban League has submitted written testimony to the Senate Judiciary Committee explaining their support for Merit Selection:

In our state’s history, only once in 158 years of judicial elections has an African American been elected to Pennsylvania’s Supreme Court. Equally disturbing is that currently only two out of 31 statewide appellate court judges are African American. Not a single minority sits on the state’s highest court and neither an Asian or Hispanic judge has ever been elected to any of the appellate courts.

I believe the system we use to elect appellate judges is to blame.

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Research by the American Judicature Society shows that racial minorities have greater success reaching appellate benches through merit selection.  Nobody is excluded from the process due to a lack of resources or political connections.  Merit selection emphasizes qualifications and values racial and ethnic diversity – as well as gender, geographic and professional diversity.

Pennsylvania is enriched by its diversity, and deserves to have courts that reflect that diversity.  Merit Selection can help achieve this.  We appreciate and thank the Urban League of Philadelphia for its support.

Learn more about the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing and read the testimony of Merit Selection supporters here.

The Pennsylvania Council of Churches supports Merit Selection of Pennsylvania’s appellate court judges. In written testimony submitted to the Senate Judiciary Committee in connection with its recent hearings on Merit Selection legislation, the Pennsylvania Council of Churches explained:

Our interest in the proposed system comes from our concern about the biblical principle of justice. Among the more important changes, merit selection will completely remove fundraising and the influence of campaign money from the selection process. By doing so it creates a system where all qualified Pennsylvanian lawyers who aspire to be on the appellate courts have a fair chance to reach the bench.

This nicely sums up why so many groups and individuals are recognizing that electing appellate judges just isn’t the best way to get the most qualified, fair and impartial judges on the bench. Thanks to the Pennsylvania Council of Churches for supporting this important reform.

You can read more about the Senate Judiciary Committee hearing and view the testimony of other Merit Selection supporters on our Report on the Senate Hearing page.

In the most recent Pennsylvania Senate Republican News podcast (September 19, 2008) State Senator Jane Earll voices her support for Merit Selection and explains that the September 16 Senate Judiciary Committee hearing was important to “lay some groundwork so by the time that these pieces [Senate Bills 1324 and 1325] get reintroduced, people might have a better understanding  of why it is necessary to change the way that we select our appellate court judges.”

I think there is a perception that money controls the process, that ultimately our courts are not diverse because average people cannot run statewide races for the amount of money that it involves, and I think that ballot position actually goes a long way in determining who ultimately is going to sit on our courts.  And I think there’s a better way to do it.

We appreciate and thank Senator Earll for her leadership and support on this critical issue.  Download the podcast here.

The Pennsylvania Cable Network, PCN, will be airing this week’s Senate Judicary Committee Hearing on Merit Selection on Friday September 19 at 3:25.  We will post additional airings as they are scheduled. For schedule and station information visit PCN. For our full coverage of the hearing, visit our earlier post and our Report on the Senate Hearing page.

Merit Selection supporters gathered in Harrisburg yesterday for a hearing before the Senate Judiciary Committee.  Lynn Marks and Shira Goodman of PMC and PMCAction were joined by former Superior Court Judge Phyllis W. Beck and representatives of civic groups, business organizations, and lawyers and bar associations in advocating for adoption of Merit Selection for the Pennsylvania appellate courts. A full list of those who presented testimony and copies of written submissions are available on our Report on the Senate Hearing page.

At the beginning of the hearing, Senator Jane Earll, prime sponsor of the Merit Selection legislation, expressed her reasons for supporting judicial selection reform:”I believe a better court, a more diverse court will result in a system that isn’t dependent on money and ballot positions.”

Coalition members testified about the problems inherent in electing judges, particularly the increasing expenses associated with judicial campaigns and the negative perceptions caused by fundraising by judicial candidates.  Marks, executive director of PMC and PMCAction explained, “The current electoral system — with its emphasis on fundraising and campaign prowess — is broken and is undermining public confidence in the judiciary and our courts.  The solution that is best designed to get the most qualified, fair and impartial judges on the appellate bench and to get those juges out of the fundraising business is Merit Selection.”

In addition, coalition partners explained that Merit Selection offers greater opportunities for qualified candidates from diverse backgrounds to reach the appellate bench.  Edward Lanza, board member of the Hispanic Chamber of Commerce of Central Pennsylvania told the Committee: “We’re persuaded the Merit Selection process would be more likely to elevate qualified minority candidates to the appellate bench.”

Senator Earll and Senator Mary Jo White actively questioned those presenting testimony.  In response to comments that Merit Selection supporters aim to disenfranchise voters, Senator White explained:

I object to that statement about the franchise. I believe in the franchise and so does Sandra Day O’Connor [who is a supporter of Merit Selection]. . . . In my experience, the current system discriminates against people who can’t raise large amounts of money to run campaigns — women, those from small counties and minorities.  This tries to level the playing field.

Gene Barr, Vice President for Government Relations of the Pennsylvania Chamber of Business & Industry agreed, explaining the Merit Selection legislation “is giving Pennsylvanians the opportunity to decide if they want to change the process” of how they select appellate judges.  On this very issue Senator White noted:

1969 [when last a referendum was held on this issue] was forty years ago.  A lot has changed in that time, the money, television ads, out of state money. . . Let’s ask the people again.  It shows a lot of confidence in the voters to ask “are you confident in voting for appellate court judges?”

We thank Senator Greenleaf and the Judiciary Committee for holding this hearing.  We hope it will be the first step in an ongoing dialogue about how we select appellate court judges — a dialogue that will culiminate with giving the people of Pennsylvania the opportunity to decide for themselves.

PMC and PMCAction are pleased to announce that the Senate Judiciary Committee is holding a public hearing on Merit Selection tomorrow, Tuesday September 16 at 9:30 am.  The hearing will be held in Hearing Room #1 of the North Office Building, at the corner of North Street and Commonwealth Ave., in Harrisburg. For more information, click here.

We are pleased to join with many of our coalition partners in a discussion about the problems inherent in electing judges, the need for reform and the benefits of implementing a Merit Selection system for the appellate courts.  This hearing is the first step in the process of letting the people of Pennsylvania decide whether to change the way we select our appellate judges.

Check back tomorrow and Wednesday for reports about the hearing and links to testimony submitted by coalition partners.

Senator Stewart Greenleaf, Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee, has scheduled a public hearing on Merit Selection for Tuesday September 16 at 9:30 am in Hearing Room #1 of the North Office Building, at the corner of North Street and Commonwealth Ave., in Harrisburg. For more information, click here.

Representatives of PMC and PMCAction and members of civic groups, business organizations, and bar associations as well as former Pennsylvania appellate court judges will be offering testimony about why they support Merit Selection for the appellate courts.  Opponents of changing the way we select appellate court judges also will have the opportunity to address the Committee.

We are grateful for this opportunity to continue the public dialogue about the problems inherent in the judicial elections, the need for reform and the benefits of Merit Selection.  We thank Senator Greenleaf and the Judiciary Committee for holding this hearing.  We hope Pennsylvanians will attend, follow media accounts of the hearing and visit our Senate Hearing Information page for more detailed information and access to some of the testimony presented.