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FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE |
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State Rep. Matthew H. Smith |
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Governors join Smith in support of judicial merit selection legislation
HARRISBURG, June 9 – State Rep. Matt Smith, D-Allegheny, was joined by Pennsylvania Gov. Ed Rendell, former Govs. Tom Ridge (via telephone), Richard Thornburgh (via telephone), and Mark Schweiker, as well as state Sen. Jane Earll, R-Erie, Lynn Marks, executive director of PMC & PMCAction, and representatives of coalition partners to urge legislative leaders to move merit selection legislation forward.
Retired United States Supreme Court Justice Sandra Day O’Connor provided a written statement as well.
Smith issued the following statement in reaction to the continued support for his proposal.
"I am honored that former Governors Ridge, Thornburgh, and Schweiker and Gov. Rendell joined us today to highlight their bipartisan support of merit selection. Pennsylvanians deserve to know that their interests are served and the best possible manner of selecting appellate court judges is being utilized. Campaigns are too often driven by huge sums of special interest money and negative campaign ads and mailings. We’ve already seen the erosion in the faith of our judicial system and the belief that justice is for sale. This is a major part of the overall reforms that we are fighting for in order for Pennsylvania government to be reflective of today’s world. We have built safeguards into the legislation that, experts agree, will insure the best candidates are on the bench. The poll released today by PMC demonstrates that 62 percent of Pennsylvanians support merit selection and that 73 percent believe that the most qualified candidate does not usually win a statewide judicial election. This sort of public sentiment erodes the public’s confidence in our judicial system. This erosion should be a concern to every Pennsylvania citizen because the fundamental basis for our judicial system is that every citizen arrives at the courthouse steps with an equal opportunity to present the merits of their case. The public perception is that this is not currently occurring."
House Bill 1621 and companion Senate Bill 860 would create a merit selection process for all statewide judicial appellate court positions. The legislation, amending the state constitution, must pass in two consecutive legislative sessions prior to going to the voters for a ballot referendum.
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