Meanwhile, perhaps in reaction to Keller's predicament or, more likely, in reaction to Democratic judicial victories in Houston, Robison reports that "Sen. Dan Patrick, R-Houston, has filed a bill to ban straight ticket voting only in judicial races."I doubt that many people will shed tears, but Texas Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Sharon Keller may have to pay her own legal expenses to defend herself against charges she improperly shut the door on a condemned inmate's last-gasp appeal.
The judicial misconduct charges brought against Keller last week by the Commission on Judicial Conduct could result in her removal from office and, if she fights them, many thousands of dollars in legal bills.
Officeholders often can use political funds to pay lawyers. But Keller, according to a filing last month with the Texas Ethics Commission, has no money in her political account. State law also prohibits Keller, who won't be up for reelection until 2012, from raising any political money before June 2011. And any donation of legal services could be construed as an illegal political contribution.
The judge's attorney, Chip Babcock, has asked the judicial conduct commission to pay her legal expenses.
If the answer is no, will Keller fight, or resign?
In a Grits for Breakfast reader poll last week, among 368 respondents, 50% said Judge Keller should be impeached by the Legislature and removed from office. Another 23% believed she should be disbarred, while 9% thought a public reprimand was punishment enough.
Too bad Fitzgerald does not! We are minus an officer because of his foolishness!
ReplyDeleteSo 73% of Grits readers are knee- jerk, anti-death penalty flaming libs. Big surprise there. I wonder what the college graduation rate is among that 73%?
ReplyDelete8:01:
ReplyDeleteI thought us "liberal elitists" had a higher rate of education (and literacy...) than you Bible-thumping "conservatives"...
If Judge Shelton could accept a gift of discounted attorney's fees, why couldn't Keller?
ReplyDelete(Let's ignore Shelton's failure to report the discount as a gift...)
To you people who think none of us who think Sharon Keller should be removed from the bench have no education, I beg to differ with you.
ReplyDeleteI for one have a Master's Degree and I work each and every day in the Medical Field.
Do not attach your labels to those of us you do not know, we have our right to express our opinions whether we have degrees are not!!
The Statesman is reporting that Judge Keller has applied for, and was granted, an extension of time to respond to these charges.
ReplyDeleteI guess she filed that request before 5pm.