Evening star., 1911-08-15
independence a Requisite.

| what l have said has been to little
purpose if il has not shown that judges
1 to fulfill their functions properly in oCr
popular government must be more IN
dependent than in any other form OF
government and that need of independ-
ence is greatest where the individual is
one litigant. and the state, guided by
the successful and governing majority, Is
| the other. In order to maintain the
rights of the minority and the Individual
and to preserve our constitutional balance
we must have judges with courage 10 de-
eide against the majority when justice
! and law require.
by the recall in the Arizona constitu-
| tion it is proposed to give to the majority
power to remove arbitrarily. and without
delay, any Judge who may have the couf-
age to render an unpopular decision. by
the recall 1t is proposed to enable
minority OF .5 per cent of the voters OF
the district or state. for no prescribed
cause. after the judge has been in office
six months, to submit the question of his
retention in Office to the electorate Inc
| petitioning minority must say on the nal-
| lot what they can against him in 2uo
words. and he must defend as best ne
can in the same space. Other candidates
are permitted to present themselves ana
have their names printed on the ballot, 50
that the recall is not based solely on the
record or the acts of the judge, but also
on the question whether some other and
| more popular candidate has been found to
unseat him.
Gould there he system more in
geniously devised to subject judges to
momentary gusts Of popular passion than
this? We cannot be blind to the fact
that often an intelligent and respectable
electorate may he so reused upon an is
sue that it will visit with condemnation
the decision of a just Judge. though ex-
actly in accord with the law governing
the case. merely because it affects un-
favorably their contest. Controversies
over elections, labor troubles. racial or
religious issues. issues as to the con-
struction constitutionality OF liquor
laws. criminal trials Of popular or un-
popular defendants. the removal of county
seats suits by individuals to maintain
their constitutional rights in obstruction
of some popular improvement-these and
many other cases could be cited In which
q ma jority of a district electorate would
be tempted by hasty anger to recall a
conscientious Judge if the opportunity
were open all the time No period of de-
lay is interposed for the abatement OF
popular feeling. The recall is devised to
encourage quick action, and to lead the
people to strike while the iron is hot. The
Judge is treated as the instrument and
servant Of a majority of the people and
subject to their mOmentary WILL not after
a long term in which his qualities as
judge and his character as man have
been subjected to q test of all the va
rieties of judicial work and duty 50 as to
furnish a proper means of measuring his
fitness for continuance in another term.
On the instant OF an unpopular ruling.
while the spirit of protest has not had
time to cool. and even while an appeal
may be pending from his ruling, in which
he may be sustained. he is to be hailed
before the electorate tribunal. with
no judicial hearing, evidence or defense
and thrown out of Office, and disgra ced
for life because he has failed. in single
decision. it may be, to satisfy the popu-
lar demand.