Panel to judge judges gets overhaul

Panel to judge judges gets overhaul


Posted: Mar 30, 2012 9:48 PM CDT

Updated: Mar 30, 2012 10:00 PM CDT

Posted by Nancy Amons - emailNASHVILLE, TN (WSMV) - The Tennessee Senate has voted to replace a panel that oversees judges - one that has been criticized in the past several years for being too secretive and too lenient on judges.

If you have a complaint about the way a judge handled your case, you can turn to a group called the Court of the Judiciary to investigate. But for years, people like Ginger Franklin have complained the process is broken.

"It seems to me, to be a bunch of judges overseeing a bunch of judges. Is that the fox guarding the hen house?" Franklin says.

The Court of the Judiciary meets in secret. It rarely punishes judges - it has only suspended one judge in two years - and the cases drag on and on.

"A year and a half later, nothing is settled," Franklin says.

Franklin filed a complaint against Judge Randy Kennedy. He appointed a conservator to control her life after she tumbled down the stairs and had a brain injury. Franklin filed a complaint that Kennedy didn't appoint an attorney for her, like he was supposed to. Before she knew it, her conservator had sold off everything she owned. Her house was auctioned for $36,000.

"My townhouse was emptied. My bank accounts were cleared out. My car was gone. I was liquidated," Franklin says. "And he signed off on everything that was done."

The Court of the Judiciary received 703 complaints against judges over a two-year period. Only one of the judges was suspended. Nine received public reprimands.

Over the past year, legislators like Sen. Mae Beavers have worked to overhaul the system.

"Judges are elected officials. And if there's a problem, I think the public needs to know it," Beavers said in September.

The Senate reforms are designed to make it easier for people filing complaints. It also changes the makeup of the board; and for the first time, the board's rulings are more transparent. They have to make monthly and quarterly reports to the legislature. The bill now goes to the House.

Please read complete article at link below:


http://www.wsmv.com/story/17300201/panel-to-judges-judges-gets-overhaul

Editor's note: Kind of like the ARDC or Judicial Review in Illinois...just rubber stamps for injustice!  Lucius Verenus, Schoolmaster, ProbateSharks.com

KawamotoDragon.com