Are Inside Politics Perverting Supreme Court Selection Process? Court Has Never Had Minority Justice
Thursday, June 04, 2020
Is Erin Lynch Prata's campaign for a seat on the Rhode Island State Supreme Court violating the state's ethics standards and being overly politicized?
John Marion, Executive Director of Rhode Island Common Cause, is raising concerns about the process and overt politics.
The stakes are high to fill the much sought after vacancy on the Court which was created when Justice Gilbert Indeglia announced his retirement from the court in January.
GET THE LATEST BREAKING NEWS HERE -- SIGN UP FOR GOLOCAL FREE DAILY EBLASTOn Tuesday, the Ethics Commission voted to overrule their staff’s recommendation which cleared the way for Rhode Island State Senator Lynch Prata to move forward with her candidacy for a seat on the Supreme Court.
“99 times out of 100 [the Ethics Commission] takes that legal advice from the staff and they adopt it what happened. Yesterday the staff gave a legal recommendation that Senator Lynch Prata is subject to the revolving door prohibition meaning she can't apply — it would be illegal for her to apply and they did not accept the staff's advice, as they voted it down five to two,” said Marion on GoLocal LIVE.
“Rhode Island has gone the longest of any Supreme Court in the United States with a vacancy so it's very significant that there's this vacancy and it's expected to be the first of several in the next few years because our core is fairly senior,” said Marion.
Rhode Island is one of a handful of states that have never had minorities on their highest court.
And, by far, Rhode Island has the highest percentage of minorities to have never had a person of color on the highest court.
“We're in a minority of states that have never had a person color...these are very precious appointments,” added Marion.
Revolving Door Limitations Under Siege
On Tuesday, Marion said in a statement, “A majority of the Commission members ignored the staff’s sound legal interpretation of the Code of Ethics in order to give a pass through the revolving door to Senator Lynch Prata.”
“In doing so the Commissioners ignored the plain meaning of the law and turned their back on both legal precedent, and a thirty-year fight to end backroom deals and establish an independent judiciary for our state. Until the playing field is truly level, Rhode Island will never get the government and judiciary it deserves, one that is truly reflective of our great and diverse state. Common Cause Rhode Island will continue to stand up for those ideals,” said Marion in his statement.
Lynch voiced her pleasure with the decision by the Ethics Commission to overrule the staff recommendation.
“The decision by the Ethics Commission today affirms what I believe Rhode Island law clearly states; a Supreme Court Justice is a constitutional office. I thank the Commission for the time they spent and the diligence in reviewing my request.
I submitted my application prior to the April 30 deadline and look forward to going through the extensive process,” said Lynch.
Republicans blasted the Ethics Commission’s vote, “Today, the Ethics Commission rejected the recommendation of its own staff and decided that the revolving door prohibition does not apply to Senator Erin Lynch Prata in her campaign to be a Rhode Island Supreme Court judge.
RI GOP Chairwoman Sue Cienki commented: “The majority of the Ethics Commission should be embarrassed. It rejected a well-reasoned opinion of its own staff. A Supreme Court judgeship is not an elected constitutional office; it is an appointed position. By opening the revolving door for legislators to go directly to the Supreme Court, a majority on the Ethics Commission voted to go back to the corrupt judicial selection politics that existed a generation ago when two consecutive Chief Justices, who were former legislators, resigned in disgrace.”
