Politics and Personnel Actions by Municipal Court Judges: A Cautionary Note

Abstract

Municipal court judges are required to wear many hats. First and foremost, they are the focal point of the local judicial system and "keepers of the law." Second, quite often municipal court judges have administrative responsibilities. These may include input or control over the court's staff, community outreach and activities to be taken by the court, and from time to time administrative reorganization of the court's operations. Third, municipal court judges at times act as politicians. Whether taking nonjudicial actions for political reasons is done because a judge wishes to do so or is placed in a position where he or she required to do so, the fact that most local judges work in a political world is beyond question. Unfortunately, the three hats that judges wear (judicial, administrative, and political) can place conflicting pressures on them. Due to this reality, it is critical that judges and court administrators be vigilant in adhering to proper procedures and legal requirements when taking administrative actions. Administrative and particularly per sonnel actions taken by local judges are often held up to close scrutiny. The following cases, Meek v. County of Riverside, 183 F.3d 962 (9th Cir. 1999), and Mitchell v. Randolph, 215 F.3d 753 (7th Cir. 2000), present two situations that involve the all too frequent immersion of politics into judicial personnel and staffing actions. Donald Meek was appointed as a court commissioner for the Municipal Court of the County of Riverside, California, in 1989. In 1996 Meek ran against Albert Wojcik in a nonpartisan election to fill a vacant judgeship in the court. Before the election it was alleged that Municipal Court Judge Rodney Walker, who considered Meek a political enemy and Wojcik a political ally, threatened to fire Meek from his position as commis sioner if Meek proceeded with his candidacy and lost the election. Meek did, in fact, lose the election. A week following the election Judge Walker, Judge Curtis Hinman, and now Judge Albert Wojcik met to discuss whether Meek should be fired from his commissioner's position. After discussing the matter, Judges Walker and Wojcik voted to fire Meek while Judge Hinman abstained from voting. Later that week, Meek was informed of the meeting and vote and was told that if he did not resign his position he would be fired. Later that day, Meek announced his retirement. Meek filed suit in the District Court for the Central District of California under 42