FL Gov. Crist names moderate to Supreme Court, sending Jeb Bush conservatives on warpath

[seafan]

Crist appoints Longwood judge to Florida Supreme Court

By Rene Stutzman
March 11, 2009



Judge James E.C. Perry (Joe Burbank, Orlando Sentinel / April 15, 2005)

Gov. Charlie Crist appointed Circuit Judge James E.C. Perry, the first black judge in Seminole County, to the Florida Supreme Court on Wednesday, bypassing a candidate favored by social conservatives.
Perry, 65, of Longwood, would be the fourth black jurist to serve on the state's top court. His selection gives the current seven-member court a second black justice and continues Crist's push to increase diversity in Florida courts.

Chief Justice Peggy Quince also is black. The court has one other woman, Justice Barbara Pariente, and one Hispanic, Justice Jorge Labarga.
"We have a very diverse state, and I think it's important that our court understands all the perspectives that make Florida a beautiful place to live," Crist said.

.....

Perry, a circuit judge in Sanford since 2000, grew up in the segregated South — North Carolina — and has fought to get blacks admitted to the legal profession.

.....

The Governor's Office was swamped with 27,000 pieces of e-mail, faxes and letters from people trying to influence Crist's decision.

The conservative Florida Family Policy Council lobbied for another candidate, C. Alan Lawson, a Republican and judge on the Fifth District Court of Appeal in Daytona Beach. Three out of every four pieces of mail or e-mail were in support of him.

Crist already has angered some Republicans with his outspoken support for President Barack Obama's economic-stimulus plan. That support included joining the Democratic president at a rally in Fort Myers.

John Stemberger, the group's president, would not answer questions Wednesday but issued a prepared statement, calling Crist's decision "both stunning and profoundly disappointing" and saying Crist "missed a real opportunity not only to appoint the most qualified candidate but also bring the court back into ideological balance." << :eyes: >>

These people will never, NEVER give up. (Are you listening, Mr. President?)

Other groups lobbying for Lawson included the National Rifle Association, Florida Right to Life and the Florida Police Benevolent Association, Stemberger said.

.....

Perry has spent most of his legal career in Central Florida, specializing in civil cases. He sought appointment to the bench in 1992 and 1995 but was rejected. When he applied a third time, he was selected in 2000 by then-Gov. Jeb Bush.
He served as chief judge of the 18th Judicial Circuit — Seminole and Brevard counties — for two years, starting in 2003.

Born in New Bern, N.C., Perry graduated from St. Augustine's College in Raleigh, where he played varsity football and basketball. He then served in the U.S. Army as first lieutenant.
He began his legal career, moving from Columbia University in New York to Augusta, Ga., to handle criminal cases. That move, in the early 1970s, was a cultural shock, he said in an interview in 2000. He and his wife, Adrienne, moved into an all-white neighborhood.

"People didn't speak," he said. One neighbor who did was ostracized, he said.

Perry's wife, a former Longwood mayor, is an education professor at Stetson University. They have three adult children, two of them lawyers in Central Florida.

.....

Crist said Perry was the right person for the job.

"Judge Perry's breadth of legal experience and civil-rights record make him an ideal choice for this post," the governor said. "I want to make sure that no matter which justice it is, that they do what they believe is right."

Jeb must be gnashing his teeth.



Here are Governor Crist's other Supreme Court appointments:


Ricky L. Polston, conservative extremist, October 2, 2008


Charles T. Canady, conservative extremist, August 29, 2008


Jorge Labarga, January 3, 2009, Moderate

Labarga played a role during Florida's historic 2000 presidential recount, ruling Palm Beach County elections officials could not necessarily disregard irregular chads that had not been fully punched out on ballot cards.

The U.S. Supreme Court cut off the recount before it could be completed, handing Republican George W. Bush the Florida vote and the presidency by 537 votes over Democrat Al Gore.

And now: James E.C. Perry, Moderate

Perry, a Democrat, was the beneficiary of a write-in campaign by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People. When in private practice in Orlando, Perry served as general counsel for its local Florida chapters.

Remember, the right-wingers' ONLY definition of "ideological balance on the high court" is that ALL members must be Jeb Bush Conservatives.




For background:

Is There a Major Jeb Bush vs. Governor Crist Feud Brewing?, January 5, 2009

[cbc5g]

1. Crist is turning left after the McCain loss and VP snub

[FLyellowdog]

2. Crist should consider becoming a Democrat. n/t

[DonCoquixote]

3. WHOA!!!

Ladies and gentlemen, do NOT fall for Slick Charlie's whole "I'm a nice GOP guy" BS! That men reinstated the death penalty, upholded jeb's assault on education, is giving CSX 600 million at a time when we are cutting teachers and cops, and worst off, made the state liable for years of debt should a hurricane hit, just to have insurance outfits like State farm move out anyway! You fall for this, you will see him in 2012 as a candidate!

[williesgirl]

4. I believe his every move is geared directly at 2012 with this moderate stuff.

[williesgirl]

5. deleted dup - sorry