10/27/2010 // WPB, FL, USA // Personal Injury Lawyers News // Nicole Howley
Every six years, all Florida Supreme Court Justices must appear on the general election ballot to hold their appointed positions. But this election year, a Tea Party aligned group in Central Florida has moved to oust two Supreme Court Justices, because of their decision on a single issue. It is imperative that voters retain all four Supreme Court Justices, as none of the judges have acted unethically over a series of rulings.
James E.C. Perry and Jorge Labarga are being targeted for their decision on a proposed constitutional amendment that moved to exempt Floridians from federal health-care reform. The simple truth is removing these justices from the bench would be a gross abuse of the merit-retention process, which was designed to oust members of the judiciary who have proven themselves unfit for office; it was never intended to be a political referendum based on a single opinion.
In August, the Florida Bar surveyed hundreds of lawyers to get their opinions about whether the Justices on this year’s ballot should be retained. 87 percent of the lawyers, who are knowledgeable about the Supreme Court Justices, endorsed Mr. Labarga and 82 percent endorsed Mr. Perry for retention. Voters are urged retain these Supreme Court Justices, as well as Ricky L. Polston (85 percent endorsement) and Charles T. Canady (86 percent endorsement). Not only have knowledgeable legal professionals endorsed these Justices, but they have also proven their dedication to the justice system over the years, by basing their decisions on the facts and the law rather than counting votes before a ruling. All of these justices are people of great experience, education and integrity, and they have done their best to render justice based on facts and law applicable to each case—not the popular political climate at the moment.
In fact, the party seeking to remove these qualified Justices from the bench have publicly admitted the Justices were correct in their decision, based on the facts and the law—they just did not like the result of their ruling.
We urge you to also follow the facts, and vote to retain all Florida Supreme Court justices on the ballot this year.
For more information regarding the issue, please visit Orlando Sentinel’s editorial, “Election 2010: No judicial litmus tests.”
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