Top Pa. Court Takes Tougher Stance re Recusals, Tells 2 Judges to Step Down in Sua Sponte Order
In recent opinions, the Pennsylvania Supreme Court indicates that it has learned some lessons from the criminal cases against senior judges in Luzerne County and is likely to be tougher, in the future, on jurists who show indications of bias, writes Hank Grezlak in the Legal Intelligencer.
In one recent case, the supreme court called, sua sponte, for two trial judges to recuse themselves in a child-custody case due to an appearance of bias, even though the issue wasn’t raised by the parties, Grezlak notes. And in another recent case, the court not only called for a judge to recuse herself for having pressured a court reporter to alter a transcript of a hearing in which she criticized a defendant, but, in a concurring opinion by two justices, called her out for doing so, even though she serves on a court committee with one of the concurring judges.
“To alter a record is to strike at the very pillars of meaningful appellate review, and concomitantly therewith, the basic tenets of due process,” wrote Justice Max Baer. “It is my opinion that a judge’s extraordinary action in altering the official record of judicial proceedings, regardless of any protested justification, should precipitate serious repercussions.”
It would have been easy, Grezlak notes, for the court simply to order the recusals without much fanfare. By underlining the issue, the court suggests, he says, that it’s going to take a tougher approach to seemingly biased judges in the future than it did in the past.
Related coverage:
ABAJournal.com: “Top Pa. Court Axes $3.5M Libel Verdict Due to ‘Judicial Impropriety’”
ABAJournal.com: “Reports: Convicted Judge Proclaims Victory, Turns His Back on Mom Blaming Him for Her Son’s Suicide”
ABAJournal.com: “Judge Partially Convicted in Kids-for-Cash Case Seeks Acquittal or New Trial”
