Judges Matter – 2022 General Election

Note: This post is “IN PROCESS” and will be periodically updated! (10/27/22)

QUICK LINKS TO: Federal candidates, State candidates, State Measures, Judges, County Supervisors, Local Candidate, School Boards, Special Districts, Local Measures, Other voting guides/endorsements.

In our 2018 voter guide, we included this video, which starts with film of an incredibly courageous Christine Blasey Ford, who provided testimony about a Supreme Court nominee whose background investigation by the FBI was later proven to be a sham. Brett Kavanaugh, a Federalist Society member, would be elevated to the Supreme Court, where he has voting against a woman’s right to choose how her body is used, and against voting rights for all.

We are not the same voters we were in 2018 – we know more about the Federalist Society, the regressive legal fraternity that has gained ascendency under Trump and whose majority on the Supreme Court is now now threatening democracy itself (See Moore v. Harper) They, along with their corporate funders, are determined to send America back to the 1930’s, before social safety nets like Social Security and Medicare, before labor, environmental and product safety requirements, before civil rights were a guarantee.

We’d like to update this with a quote from the Los Angeles Times, which is apparently still living in another, more civilized time…”Uncontested retention elections and 12-year terms are meant to strike a balance between judicial independence — allowing justices to do their work free of popular sentiment or political partisanship — and accountability to Californians. Accordingly, voters should vote “yes” unless they believe a particular justice has demonstrated unfitness to continue serving.”

Seriously?

Has this august news organization missed how GOP-appointed judges, with conservative backup now installed on federal courts and the Supreme Court, are issuing outrageous rulings, hoping to get noticed when Federalist-Society-judge-promotion time comes around? They are now seizing border policy from the president, redefining discrimination in such a way that removes protections from the LGBTQ community, declaring whole sections of the government unconstitutional, including the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the SEC, and potentially the EPA, the National Labor Relations Board, the Federal Trade Commission. and most major social programs, including Social Security and Medicare. 

Judges matter, but how does one decide? We check in with regressive fan clubs to see who they’d have rule us…: A judge that scores well on on the “Judge Voter Guide” is a ticking time bomb, a farm team for future Kavanaughs and Coney Barretts.

Unlike in Superior Court races, in which judicial candidates face off against one another, Supreme Court and Court of Appeal justices seek retention with without opponents. The voters’ job is to say either “yes” or “no” to each of them.

YES: Chief Justice of CA – Patricia Guerrero

Los Angeles Times
Editorial
“Guerrero was appointed to the court by Gov. Gavin Newsom (D) in 2022.“

tinyurl.com/CAhighways		“The Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation, a body that reviews judicial candidates, had found Guerrero to be “exceptionally well qualified” to take over as chief,  which means it determined she “possesses qualities and attributes of remarkable or extraordinary superiority that enable her to perform the appellate judicial function with distinction.”

★
★Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice of the Supreme Court – Goodwin Liu

Los Angeles Times
“Liu was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2011. He received a partisanship confidence score of Strong Democrat“

tinyurl.com/CAhighways		“Before joining the state’s highest court, Justice Liu was Professor of Law and Associate Dean at the UC Berkeley School of Law. He has spoken to the Federalist Society, but doesn’t seem to be a member. In fact, Conservatives don’t like him as he is an outspoken advocate for the theory of a living Constitution and has an expansive interpretation of the 14th amendment.  He does not like Samuel Alito and made this clear during Alito’s nomination to the Court.  Ballotpedia notes he received a confidence score of Strong Democrat. In advance of his 2011 confirmation, the California State Bar Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation gave Liu a rating of “exceptionally well qualified” on August 29, 2011. “

–
★★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice of the Supreme Court – Martin J. Jenkins

Los Angeles Times

tinyurl.com/CAhighways		“Jenkins made history as the first openly gay justice and third Black man to serve on the state’s highest court. At the time of his nomination, the State Bar of California issued a report finding him exceptionally well qualified, the association’s highest rating. The bar committee that did the evaluation described him as brilliant, even-tempered and compassionate. He is considered a moderate, and at the time of nomination become the fifth Democratic appointee on the seven-member court.”

★★
★★Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice of the Supreme Court – Joshua P. Groban

Los Angeles Times
“Groban was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2018. Groban received a partisanship confidence score of Strong Democrat.“

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
“Justice Groban received the top rating, exceptionally well qualified, from the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation (JNE). 		David Fermino, chairman of the state bar’s commission on judicial nominees evaluation, wrote: “His broad range of legal experience, his love of learning and of the law, and his affirmative desire to hear diverse viewpoints, suit him ideally for consideration of the wide array of cases that come before our Supreme Court”

★
★Replace
NO

YES: Presiding Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. One – Frances Rothschild



Los Angeles Times
“Rothschild was appointed to the court by Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger (R) in 2005 and serves as the presiding justice of the 2nd District Division 1 court.“
“Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed her on April 4, 2005 to the Court of Appeal and Governor Jerry Brown elevated her on June 28, 2014 to Presiding Justice of Division One. She’s a registered Democrat. At the time of her nomination, Rothschild was rated “well qualified” by the JNE Commission.”

★★ Replace
★★ Replace
–

NO – Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Two – Judith M. Ashmann-Gerst

This one has had conflicting opinions due to enthusiasm from the far-right for her candidacy. But most of those are just “follow the leader” endorsements. Because the “Judge Voter Guide”, which actually administers a hard-core right-wing questionnaire, had initially failed her with a 2-star “Replace” rating, we thought she might be OK. However, she must have finally returned it with pleasing answers, as she is now rated a 3-star {Retain].

Los Angeles Times

★★★★ Retain
YES

★★★[Retain]

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
Ashmann-Gerst was appointed to the court by Governor Gray Davis in December 2001 and retained by voters in 2002 and 2010. She may have been a little less than civil in one decision.		 She was rated “exceptionally well qualified” by the State Bar Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation. “She has excelled every place she has been assigned and she has improved every court to which she has been assigned,” the district attorney said of Ashmann. On a quick search, I could find no negatives.
Portia Project podcast showing her as pro-LGBTQ:https://www.portiaprojectpodcast.com/episodes/episode7-justice-judith-ashmann-gerst#show-video

“Ashmann-Gerst has Far Right support even though she was appointed to the court by Gov. Gray Davis (D) in 2001. (per April’s Ballot)“
“Ashmann shows up at this site, which supports all the people and positions I reject.
That far-right site LIKES her. Huge red flag for me.”
This group recommends (or not, in this case) candidates based on their support for LGBTQ candidates.
From Alliance of California Judges:
In 2011, Ashmann-Gerst joined 16 other members of the Judicial Council in voting against the proposal by the Alliance of California Judges to provide one year of full mitigation of budget cuts to the trial courts. She’s on the list of “NO” votes with Hon. Henry E Hull, Third District Court of Appeal, who is a ★★★★★ hero of the far right. 		Further updates from Judge Katherine Feinstein on the result of that vote: “Madam Chief Justice and members of the Council, thank you for the opportunity to address you today. San Francisco is the first county to suffer the serious impacts of the staggeringly inadequate state budget. This week as you all know, we delivered layoff notices to 41% of our remaining court staff and announced plans to close 25 of our 63 courtrooms.”

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Three– Luis A. Lavin


“Lavin was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2015.“


Los Angeles Times

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
“He was the first openly gay justice to serve on the 2nd District Court of Appeals.		 His nomination came on the same day that the Supreme Court ruling in Obergfell v. Hodges made sex-same marriage the law of the land. Lavin is married to Michael Fleming, who oversees the political and charitable endeavors of billionaire David Bohnett, a major donor to Brown and the Democratic Party. He is a registered Democrat.  Lavin was rated “well qualified” by the JNE Commission.”  

★ Replace
★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Four – Audrey B. Collins


“Collins was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2014. She received an exceptionally well qualified rating from the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation.“


Los Angeles Times

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
Justice Collins was appointed by Governor Jerry Brown to the California Court of Appeal in 2014. She received an “exceptionally well qualified” rating from the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation and was unanimously confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. Justice Collins was appointed by President Clinton as a United States District Court Judge for the Central District of California in 1994. She served as Chief Judge of the Central District from 2009 through September 2012. She is a graduate of American University, Howard University, and UCLA. 		Collins’s story is unique in that not only did she come of age during the Civil Rights Movement, but she was also the granddaughter of a slave. To be only two generations removed from slavery is “very unusual for someone my age, now 71,” says Collins. She was born in Chester, Pa. in 1945. But both her grandfather and father married later in life, which explains her proximity to slavery. After being freed sometime in the 1860s, her grandfather, Furman Lawrence Brodie, worked his way through school, eventually becoming a minister and teacher. “He didn’t learn to read until he was 16,” says Collins. Collins was first inspired to pursue a career in law by her family’s strong tradition of public service.  Originally Republican, she’s been a Democrat since 1994.  I am unaware of any negatives.

★ Replace
★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Four – Brian S. Currey




Los Angeles Times
“Currey was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2018. The Judicial Nominees Evaluation Commission bestowed an exceptionally well qualified rating.“

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
In 2014, Governor Brown appointed him as a Judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court. His assignments included presiding over a misdemeanor trial and calendar court, handling a wide variety of cases as the only civil judge at the Compton Courthouse, and serving as the asbestos Coordination Judge at the Complex Civil Litigation Court. He also served pro tem in Divisions 1 and 3 of the Second District Court of Appeal. Governor Brown appointed him to the Court of Appeal in December 2018.		The Commission on Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed his appointment after the Judicial Nominees Evaluation Commission bestowed an “exceptionally well qualified” rating…On the pro bono front, he served as counsel to the Christopher Commission after the Rodney King incident, was a member of the Los Angeles County Bar Association’s task force on criminal justice reform, and secured a Supreme Court victory allowing the U.S. Census to more accurately count traditionally undercounted groups. His firm was honored for a program he helped to create whereby its lawyers gained trial experience by acting as pro bono prosecutors for several smaller cities. He also received an award from an environmental organization for his pro bono work in Southern California. He’s also calling out sexism is legal briefs. 

★ 
★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Five – Laurence D. Rubin


Los Angeles Times

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
Laurence D. Rubin was confirmed as the Presiding Justice of the Second District Court of Appeal, Division Five, in December 2018.		 He served as an Associate Justice in Division Eight beginning October 2001. Prior to his appointment, Presiding Justice Rubin was a trial judge on the Los Angeles Superior Court and Santa Monica Municipal Court for 19 years. On November 27, 2018, Gov. Jerry Brown (D) appointed Rubin to succeed Justice Paul Turner.  He’s a registered Democrat. Searching uncovered no negatives.

★ Replace
★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Five – Lamar W. Baker


Los Angeles Times
“Baker was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2015. He served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Legal Policy in Washington, D.C from 2012-2013.‘

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
The Commission on Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed Gov. Jerry Brown’s appointment of Lamar Baker as a Justice of the Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District in 2015. Before his appointment to the bench, Justice Baker served as Special Assistant to the President and Associate Counsel to the President at the White House from 2014 to 2015, where he served as Associate Counsel from 2013 to 2014. From 2012 to 2013, he served as a Deputy Assistant Attorney General at the U.S. Department of Justice, Office of Legal Policy in Washington, D.C., where he was chief of staff from 2011 to 2012 and senior counsel from 2010 to 2011. 		During his tenure at the Justice Department, the Attorney General of the United States recognized Justice Baker with the Award for Distinguished Service, the second-highest award given by the Department for employee performance. JNE Commission Rating: Qualified, but he came into office with little judicial experience. At the time of his nomination, right wing sites complained that he was too young and too liberal. Roger Grace at MetNews does not like him. During his nomination, it was felt that Baker—at 38, the youngest of the candidates, the only one without prior judicial experience, and the only one not be rated “exceptionally well qualified” or “well qualified by the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation—might prove controversial. But he sailed through the hearing, as witnesses testified to his wisdom and the value of his experiences in private and government practice and in the federal Executive Branch. I haven’t found other negatives.

★ Replace
★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Six – Hernando J. Baltodano


Los Angeles Times
“In June 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Justice Baltodano as an Associate Justice to the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, in Division Six. The Commission on Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed his appointment on August 3, 2022.’

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
“In November 2017, Governor Jerry Brown appointed Justice Baltodano to the Superior Court of San Luis Obispo County, where he served in the criminal and civil departments.		In November 2017, Governor Jerry Brown appointed Justice Baltodano to the Superior Court of San Luis Obispo County, where he served in the criminal and civil departments. In June 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Justice Baltodano as an Associate Justice to the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, in Division Six. The Commission on Judicial Appointments unanimously confirmed his appointment on August 3, 2022. He is a registered Democrat.”

–
★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Seven – John L. Segal


Los Angeles Times
“Segal was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown in 2015.“

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
“In May 2015 Justice Segal was nominated to the Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division Seven by Gov. Jerry Brown. The Commission on Judicial Appointments confirmed his nomination in July 2015. Segal was rated “exceptionally well qualified” by the JNE Commission.  I could find no negatives.”

–
★ Replace
NO

YES: Presiding Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Eight – Maria E. Stratton


Los Angeles Times
“Stratton was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2018. She received an exceptionally well qualified rating from the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation.”

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
In 2005, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Justice Stratton to the Los Angeles County Superior Court. 
In 2018, Governor Edmund G. Brown, Jr. appointed Justice Stratton as an Associate Justice to the California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Division Eight. In 2022, Governor Gavin Newsom appointed Justice Stratton to be Presiding Justice. After receiving an “exceptionally well qualified” rating from the Commission on Judicial Nominees Evaluation, she was unanimously confirmed by the Commission on Judicial Appointments. She’s a registered Democrat.”

★ Replace
★ ★ Replace
NO

YES: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Eight – John Shepard Wiley Jr.


Los Angeles Times
“Wiley was appointed to the court by Gov. Jerry Brown (D) in 2018.” 

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
On November 27, 2018, Gov. Jerry Brown (D) appointed Wiley to succeed Justice Laurence Rubin.
 The California Commission on Judicial Appointments confirmed Wiley’s appointment on December 21, 2018. Wiley was previously a judge for the Superior Court of Los Angeles County in California from 2002 to 2018. He was appointed by former governor Gray Davis in August 2002. He is a registered Democrat.

★ Replace
★ ★ Replace
NO

NO: Associate Justice, Court of Appeal, 2nd District, Div. Eight – Elizabeth Annette Grimes

Nope, nope, nope. The top three regressive voter guides really like this one, including the “Judge Voter Guide”, meaning she must have passed their questionaire with flying colors.


★ ★ ★ Retain
★ ★ ★ ★ Retain
YES
Los Angeles Times

tinyurl.com/CAhighways
Grimes is a rarety in this list: The only jurist appointed by Republican governors. After eighteen years in the private sector at Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher, Republican Governor Pete Wilson appointed Grimes as a Judge of the Los Angeles County Superior Court. In February 2010, Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger appointed Grimes as an Associate Justice of the California Second District Court of Appeal, Division Eight.		 She’s a registered Republican. She was rated as “qualified” back in 2005, and had some concerns at her hearing. One pro-“traditional values” (i.e., conservative) website has recommended her; on the other hand, the LA Times has also endorsed her. Given that, I did a bunch of searching to see if I could find anything of concern. I couldn’t. There’s also no concern that she’s a Trumpublican: the governors that appointed her would not be considered Republican by Trump today. I don’t think there is anything concerning here.

“Leans Far Right“

“Grimes is recommended by the California Republican Lawyers Association. Registered Republican. Prior to her appointment to the Court of Appeals in 2010, Grimes was a judge for the Superior Court of Los Angeles County in California. She was appointed to that court by Governor Pete Wilson in 1997.”

NO, NO, NO! Kavanaugh’s army – Names to know when people are getting endorsements

OUR VOTE…
Third District, Retention Election:
Harry Hull

★★★★★ [Retain]

★★★★★ [Retain]YES
Fourth District, Court of Appeal, Retention Election:
Manuel A. Ramirez		 ★★★★ [Retain]★★★★ [Retain]YES
Fourth District, Court of Appeal, Retention Election:
Carol D. Codrington		★★★ [Retain]★★★ [Retain]YES
Fourth District, Court of Appeal, Retention Election:
Bert Levy		★★★ [Retain]★★★ [Retain]YES
Fourth District, Court of Appeal, Retention Election:
Brad Hill		★★★★ [Retain]
★★★★ [Retain]YES
Jennifer R.S. Detjen★★★ [Retain]★★★ [Retain]YES
Superior Court, Seat 70, General Election: Renee Yolande Chang★★★★★ [Endorsed]★★★★★ [Endorsed]YESSee discussion:
tinyurl.com/CAhighways
Superior Court, Seat 90, General Election:
Leslie Gutierrez		★★★ [Endorsed]★★★ [Endorsed]YESSee discussion:
tinyurl.com/CAhighways
Superior Court, Seat 151, General Election: Karen Brako★★★★★ [Endorsed]★★★★★ [Endorsed]YES
See discussion:
tinyurl.com/CAhighways

BLUE – Endorsement Legend

https://bluevoterguide.org/
https://www.theleaguesf.org/voter_guides
https://www.wehodems.org/current-issues-endorsements
https://aprilsballot.com
https://progressivejudges.com/calif-judges/
As a long time LGBTQ Rights Advocate, I, Jack Castiglione (https://www.jackcastiglione.com/) and my fellow Democrat committee recommend the following individuals for office because they support LGBTQ rights.
tinyurl.com/CAhighways

Media – Endorsement Legend

M.1 https://www.latimes.com/opinion/story/2022-10-09/yes-on-california-supreme-court-justicesLos Angeles Times

GOP/Regressive – Endorsement Legend

A. Judge Voter Guide
B. Election Forum
C. tinyurl.com/robynnorell
D.

Resources

  • (VC Reporter) Retention election for appellate justices – by candidate Hernaldo Baltodano
  • (Sheldon Whitehouse) The Third Federlist Society
  • (Slate) The Truly Scary Part of the $1.6 Billion Conservative Donation
  • (govinfo.gov) Ashmann-Gerst, Judith, Associate Justice, California Court of Appeal, Second Appellate District, Los Angeles, California, letter …………………………………….. 1229
  • Alliance for Justice

QUICK LINKS TO: Federal candidates, State candidates, State Measures, Judges, County Supervisors, Local Candidate, School Boards, Special Districts, Local Measures, Other voting guides/endorsements.