Civics Lessons

I think I need to go back to school when it comes to Civics. Evidently I have this perverted view of the roll of Judges in our society. I have always thought that Judges, in deciding cases (as opposed to juries), knew, understood, and upheld the laws established by the Legislatures of the various States, handing down decisions that honored those laws, theoretically established by representatives of the people in that particular State.

Not having ever had much to do with the Court system, I suppose there are times when cases are filed and tried that are not covered by specific law, and it becomes the prerogative of the Judge to make a decision based on some other factors.

What appears to me to be occurring on a regular basis, however, is that Judges are handing down decisions dependent on their personal history, slant, politics, feelings, attitudes, and allegiances, rather than applying established law.

Here’s an example – (there is much more in the article I did not quote)

The judge deciding what could become a landmark gay marriage case in Virginia defies easy characterization: She was a prosecutor, but also a public defender. She was appointed by President Barack Obama, and she also served in the military as a Navy lawyer. U.S. District Judge Arenda L. Wright Allen, who has been on the bench for less than three years, is overseeing the highest-profile case of her short judicial career. If she throws out Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage, the state would be the first in the South to allow gay marriage, though attorneys on both sides say her ruling will be appealed. (Associated Press)

It seems to me, which is why I may need to return to “higher education,” that a wise and proper disposition of the case would be to cite the LAW established at, hopefully, the will of the people of the State, enacted by the Legislature and signed by the Governor, thereby putting the “rule of law” ahead of personal preference, obvious inexperience, and political expedience.

But, that’s just me.