1. How are the judges selected?
Rose Institute:|
The selection of judges under Proposition 77 follows a complex formula which proponents say is designed to minimize partisan bias and political influence. Five basic steps guide this formula:
1) The Judicial Council, an administrative body of the California judicial system, begins the selection process by compiling a list of retired California state and federal judges who are both capable and willing to serve on the panel as Special Masters. 2) After compiling ... this list the Judicial Council randomly selects 24 judges, of whom no more than 12 may belong to any single political party. Additionally, the pool of retired judges must contain an equal number of registered Democrats and registered Republicans. 3) Once the pool has been formed, the Democratic and Republican leaders of both the California Assembly and the California State Senate each nominate three retired judges, thus creating a final pool of 12. Each legislative leader is disqualified from nominating any retired judge of the same political registration; that is, no Republican leader can nominate any Republican judge, and likewise no Democratic leader can nominate any Democratic judge. 4) After the pool has been winnowed to 12 in this fashion, each of the four legislative leaders would possess the right to remove any one judge nominated by another leader. Depending on how many leaders exercised this option, the final pool would consist of between 8 and 12 retired judges. 5) Once this final phase has been reached, responsibility falls to the Chief Clerk of the Assembly, who randomly selects three of the remaining judges to become the Special Masters and to sit on the Redistricting Panel. Once again, at least one Democrat and one Republican must be among the final selections. |
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Pro / Con:
| [ Answers from the (Yes/No) on 77 campaign have been requested but not yet received. They will be posted as soon as they arrive. Until then, please refer to the campaign website at (www.YesOn77.com / www.noonproposition77.com/). ] |