Thurston calls out Bondi and Cannon, urges rejection of merit retention attacks

Rep. Perry Thurston, a Democrat from Plantation and the the incoming House Democratic Leader, issued an Open Letter to Floridians Monday, urging them to reject attempts to politicize the judiciary, as well as oppose Amendment 5, which would require Senate approval of judicial appointments.

In his statement, Thurston also urged Floridians to "call on state Attorney General Pam Bondi to reject the Republican Party of Florida’s attack on the independent judiciary" and his letter chastised outgoing House Speaker Dean Cannon for double-talk.

UPDATE: Cannon responded to Thurston with these comments: “I appreciate the irony of the most irrationally partisan Democrat leader in recent years accusing everyone else of partisanship.” 

Sens. Garcia, Dockery and Jones speak up against GOP decision on merit retention

Two outgoing Republican senators and one returning member joined a growing chorus of prominent Floridians Friday and signed a joint statement opposing the Republican Party of Florida's executive board decision to oppose the merit retention of Supreme Court Justices R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince.

"The Justices who are up for merit retention on the November ballot have served ably and honestly in their roles as Supreme Court Justices,'' wrote Sens. Rene Garcia of Miami, Paula Dockery of Lakeland and Dennis Jones of Semnole, in a joint letter. Dockery and Jones are retiring because of term limits this fall. Garcia was elected withouth opposition.

They urged the party "to reconsider this unprecedented insertion of politics into what has been a system that has served Florida and her citizens well."

Here's their letter:

Committee to defend justices launches first television ad

 The Committee to Defend Justice from Politics, the political committee operated by Republican Stanley Tate and former City of Coral Gables general counsel Elizabeth M. Herhandez, is up with its first ad in Tampa, Orlando and Miami today defending the three Supreme Court justices up for merit retention.

"What do the politicians in Tallahassee want?'' asks the announcer in the 30-second spot. "Absolute power,'' he answers. "Even over our courts." The announcer then quotes a series of newspaper editorials critical of the Republican Party of Florida's decision to get involved in the issue and asks voters: "Want to stop the politicians from trying to take over the Supreme Court? Then stand up for our justices against this political power grab."

The problem with the accusation is that there is no politician in Tallahassee who has openly admitted to being out to get the three justices up for merit retention.

House Speaker Will Weatherford and Senate President Don Gaetz both said they were not consulted before the RPOF's executive board took it's unanimous vote to oppose R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince.

Former Republican judge and 2 US Attorneys to FL GOP: it's a "mistake" to politicize Supreme Court justice fight

Former U.S. Attorneys Roberto Martinez and Marcos Jimenez joined with Allison DeFoor, a former judge and GOP Lt. Gov. candidate, want the Republican Party of Florida to stop actively campaigning against three Florida Supreme Court justices whose rulings have irked conservatives. The three lawyers all say it's bad for government. Here's their Oct. 1 letter:

We, respectfully and as Republicans with long standing credentials, including former service by one of us as the Vice-Chair of the Republican Party of Florida (RPOF), suggest a reappraisal of the decision by the Executive Committee of the RPOF formally opposing the merit retention election of three Supreme Court Justices. We request that you deliver this letter to each member of the Executive Committee.

Judges should not decide legal cases based upon partisan politics. That is fundamental to our nation's system of government. To enhance the judiciary's neutrality and independence from partisan political activity Florida's legislature has placed legal restrictions on the type of political activity that may occur in a judicial election.

Florida Statute 105.09 makes it illegal. punishable as a criminal misdemeanor, for political parties to endorse, support, or assist a candidate for judicial office. Florida Statute 105.701 makes it illegal. subject to the payment of a civil fine, for any person to use a party affiliation in connection with a judicial election, including in merit retention elections.

The RPOF was within its legal right to express its position publicly. But, just because it has that legal right, does not mean it was right for it to do so. The retention of Supreme Court Justices should not be turned into partisan political affairs.

Women lawyers: vote for justices based on ethics, not high profile cases

The number one factor voters should consider when deciding whether or not to vote for a judge in a merit retention race is the judge's ethics and integrity, according to an August polls of members of the Florida Association for Women Lawyers.

The 3,000-member organization said that lawyers surveyed said that the next top factors voters should consider when deciding whether to retain justices is the judge's impartiality, commitment to the law, judicial temperament and demeanor and legal abilities. The least important factor, according to 75 percent of those surveyed, was the judge's ruling in high profile cases.

Florida Supreme Court Justices, Barbara Pariente, Peggy Quince and R. Fred Lewis, along with 15 appeals court justices, will appear on the November 6, 2012 ballot. The survey was part of an the organization's effort to educate its members on merit retention. The Florida Association of Women Lawyers is a a voluntary bar association that provides a statewide voice for Florida’s women lawyers.

From its statement:

Florida justices learn the art of fighting back as retention race heats up

The host committee for the campaign fundraiser at the DoubleTree Hotel here in June included former Gov. Reubin Askew, five former Supreme Court justices and some of Florida’s most prominent lawyers and lobbyists.

But unlike most Tallahassee political gatherings, the beneficiaries were not politicians. They were three justices of the Florida Supreme Court: R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente, and Peggy Quince, who each face yes or no votes in next month’s statewide merit retention election.

The justices have now rid their robes to play politics in response to what has become the most politically-charged merit retention election in state history. They are fighting for their judicial lives as they fend off attacks from several conservative groups who want them booted from the high court’s bench.

In Florida, tea party groups and the Republican Party of Florida are targeting justices, with one conservative group even financing television ads.

To combat the attacks, the justices have hired political consultants, created web sites and established political committees to raise money. Their supporters have raised at least $330,000 for each justice — more than most candidates running for the state House.

The once sleepy, non-partisan, merit retention campaigns are now expensive political battles.

“We had to speak out and educate, otherwise the attacks would go unanswered,’’ Quince explained to voters at a forum at Florida State University College of Law on Friday. More here.

Read more here: http://www.miamiherald.com/2012/10/06/v-fullstory/3037663/fla-supreme-court-justices-fight.html#storylink=cpy

Police and fire unions blast GOP attack on court

The Republican leaders in two police and firefighter unions warned Monday that their party's attempt to oust three of Florida’s sitting justices is a “chilling’’ development that could lead to trouble for law enforcement.

“If successful, it could put active law enforcement officers in harm’s way,’’ said Jeff McAdams of the Gainesville Police Department, a Republican and the legislative chair for the Fraternal Order of Police. “Any time the courts, our judicial system, is challenged in such a fashion to bring discredit upon it, the public loses trust in government.”

The Fraternal Order of Police joined with members of the Florida Professional Fire Fighters to speak out against the decision by the Republican Party of Florida last month to oppose three justices who are up for merit retention.

Justices R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince go before voters for a yes or no vote in November. Voters must decide whether they should be allowed to stay on the bench and, for the first time since the merit retention system was begun in 1976, a political party has taken sides on the issue.

RPOF opposes justices but takes 'no position' on amendment to give power to Senate

In an interesting turn of events, the Florida Republican Executive Committee that voted to oppose the retention of the three Florida Supreme Court justices in November has also voted to support all but one of the 10 amendments on the ballot.

Which amendment did they take "no position" on?

The board voted to support all but Amendment 5 -- the one that would weaken the governor's powers over the judiciary by requiring that all justices to the Florida Supreme Court, as well as judges to the appellate courts, come before the state Senate for confirmation. The amendment placed on the ballot by legislative leaders as a compromise in a broader effort to reshape the Supreme Court.

Republican Party of Florida spokesman Brian Burgessconfirmed the board decided not to vote on the proposal but would not offer a reason why. "It's a grassroots vote,'' he said. He noted that the decisions to oppose the retention of R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince was unanimous. He said he did not know what the vote was on the decision to take no position on Amendment 5.

If the RPOF succeeds and the three justices are removed from the court, Gov. Rick Scott would have the power to appoint three replacements. If Amendment 5 receives 60 percent of the vote and becomes law, his appointees would have to also be confirmed by the state Senate.

If Amendment 5 fails, the existing process would remain in place: a panel of legal experts screens candidates and chooses nominees to send to the governor for each opening on the court. The governor's selects from that list and his appointee would not face a confirmation vote by the Legislature.

Opposition group releases new ad attacking Florida justices

 

Restore Justice 2012, the group formed to campaign against what they consider "judicial activism" by the three Florida Supreme Court justices up for merit retention, is out with a new web ad.

The two-minute video highlights the same 2003 murder case that was underscored by the Republican Party of Florida when it announced a "grassroots" decision at its last executive board meeting to oppose retention of Barbara Pariente, Peggy Quince and R. Fred Lewis. The party did not oppose the justices in 2006 when the justices were first up for merit retention after the same decision.

The justices "wanted to give this unrepentant killer another chance,'' the announcer says.

This will be the second ad aimed at attacking the justices since the party made its decision. Last week, the conservative Americans for Prosperity Florida chapter announced it was running an ad critical of the same justices for their decision to throw a flawed amendment off the November ballot that would have served as a referendum on health care reform. No details yet on the size of the ad buy and which media markets it is reaching.

Restore Justice 2012 has kept a low profile until now. It is organized as a 527 through the IRS and raised $60,000 through July 13, the last reporting period, with $41,000 of it coming from a Miami physician, Allan Jacobs.

RPOF chairman pushes back with attack on justices as "red-faced" and angry

Hit with a barrage of criticism over the Republican Party of Florida siding with a right-wing conservative group in opposition to the state's three Florida Supreme Court justices, RPOF Chairman Lenny Curry roared back on Friday with an op-ed in a handful of newspapers and online sites.

Some news organizations, such as the Tampa Bay Times, have refrained from running it because they claim it includes false information.

"Here’s a riddle for Florida voters,'' Curry begins, in an opening laced with sarcasm. "Who wears a black robe, is sitting on a stack of a million greenbacks, and has a red face because voters get to decide whether or not they keep their jobs?"

He answers his rhetorical question by naming the state's three justices who are up for merit retention, Justices R. Fred Lewis, Barbara Pariente and Peggy Quince. Then adds:

 "The three of them are sitting on a combined political war chest of more than a million dollars, given to them by special interest groups, trial lawyers and political activists.  And they are red-faced with anger that voters get to decide their fate at the ballot box."

Curry said the idea of opposing the three justices sprung from a "grassroots groundswell raised the issue ahead of a board meeting" and he denied persistent rumors that the issue was inserted onto the agenda at the urging of Gov. Rick Scott, who will be able to appoint replacements if the three justices are not retained. 

"They couldn’t be more out of touch with reality,'' Curry wrote. "...the governor had nothing to do with it."