Are You Really Qualified To Be A Houston Criminal Court Judge?
Early voting for the 2010 Texas primaries has started this week. I am not going to suggest what candidate to vote for, but I have noticed some things that annoy me. First and foremost, a candidate for any criminal bench should be a practicing Houston criminal attorney. It is arrogant that someone that has not worked as a defense attorney or a prosecutor believes that they can magically put on a black robe and be able to preside over criminal cases. If you have never even seen a DWI trial how is someone qualified to judge one. Also, any lawyer that is running for a felony court bench should routinely be handling felony cases as part of their practice. Unlike a misdemeanor court the consequences in a felony are much more severe. We are talking about the potential of someone spending the rest of their life in prison in a felony court. If a person has not dealt with these types of cases as a lawyer on either side of the bar what makes them think a week at a judicial school will give them the knowledge. A person may take a scuba class during their Mexico vacation, but that does make them capable of diving for the remains of the Titanic. Lastly, if a person is not qualified enough to pass the felony appointment test they have no business being a felony judge.
