Judge rejects Mayor’s attempt reduce N.O. judgeships

25th August 2014   ·   0 Comments

A Baton Rouge judge rejected New Orleans Mayor Mitch Landrieu’s bid to eliminate the juvenile judge seat held by indicted Orleans Parish Juvenile Court Judge Yolanda King by allowing the seat to remain on this fall’s election ballot.

Civil Court Judge Wilson Fields ruled Mon­day that the City of New Orleans did not follow the protocol for declaring the embattled juvenile court judge’s seat vacant. King was declared ineligible to serve on the bench in May by the Louisiana Supreme Court after a grand jury indicted her last year.

Judge Fields ruled in favor of Secretary of State Tom Schedler, who argued that the disqualification has not left the seat vacant.

Madro Banderies, an attorney representing Orleans Parish Clerk of Criminal Court Arthur Morrell, challenged Landrieu’s motion long with Schedler.

“The judge found that Judge King’s seat had not been vacated under the law,” Banderies told WWL-TV. “We believe that’s the correct ruling.”

A week before the hearing, a coalition of civil rights leaders and voting-rights advocates implored Secretary of State Tom Schedler and Orleans Parish Clerk of Criminal Court Arthur Morrell to intercede in the case on behalf of Judge King and Orleans Parish voters.

“The matter of whether Judge King violated the law is unsettled,” Justice & Beyond told Morrell and Schedler in the letter dated Aug. 12. “We believe she did not. That will be determined by the Orleans Parish Criminal District Court. If her seat were to be removed from the ballot, and if it was determined later that you were in error, what would be the cost of putting on a special election? We believe the considerations of special election expenses and Voting Rights Act violations clearly put the interest of your office in a wait-and-see position.

“Waiting on the Criminal District Court was anticipated in the legislative act that changed the judgeships,” the letter continued. “It seems in there are persons in this dispute that would like to bully you and the court. Bullying should not be allowed. Too many have died to attain and preserve voting rights for this matter not to be taken seriously. If one public official is allowed to determine whether Judge King serves the people who elected her, what will the next erosion of the 15th Amendment and the Voting Rights Act be? I remind you of the erosion of voting rights after the Hayes-Tilden compromise of 1876. That erosion continued until African Americans lost the right to vote and other civil and human rights.”

On August 14, Orleans Parish Criminal Court Judge Michael Kirby rejected attorney Clarence Roby Jr.’s motion to dismiss the charges against Judge King.

While the legal fight is likely far from over, on Monday Justice & beyond member Pat Bryant applauded Wilson’s ruling.

Pat Bryant, a member of Justice & Beyond, applauded Fields’ ruling.

“I’d like to say that justice was served,” Bryant told WWL-TV. “We’re very happy that Judge King, or anyone else who is qualified, can run for that seat.”

WWL-TV reported that the City of New Orleans said that it plans to file an emergency writ with the 1st Circuit Court of Appeal to contest Monday’s ruling.

Qualifying began Wednesday for the upcoming fall election.

While Ramessu Merriamen Aha said he is relieved that Judge Fields rejected the mayor’s efforts to take away two juvenile court judgeships from New Orleans, he said it’s disappointing that so few elected officials take a stand against these kinds of bold moves that are made to circumvent the rights of the people to govern themselves and share in decision-making power.

“Where are all of the Black elected officials and white elected officials of good will when all this is going on?” Aha told The Louisiana Weekly. “Where are the people we elect to represent our interests and fight for us when school officials try to build schools for our children on toxic landfills, when other elected officials try to change the City charter to suit their personal agenda and when blatant political moves are made that impact our voting and civil rights?”

This article originally published in the August 25, 2014 print edition of The Louisiana Weekly newspaper.a