Ouch, that's going to leave a mark

As most readers of this blog know, the IELB regularly whines about the lack of progress for handling of civil cases. Most know that because of the staggering number of criminal cases, that the county has been required by law to re-assign its civil judges to criminal cases. This wasn't enough for DA Rod Pacheco, though. He wanted the courts to reassign probate, juvenile and family law judges as well. The judges refused. Mr. Pacheco couldn't stand for this. His reputation as a tough crime fighter was on the line. So what if the administration of justice of non-criminal cases stopped? He's got to campaign that he's tough on crime. So naturally he appealed the judge's refusal to a panel of Orange County Superior Court judges. The PE reports here that the panel summarily rejected Mr. Pacheco's position.

Sanity prevails. The IELB recognizes and appreciates that the county is underserved with judges. The county should have 12o judicial positions based on its size. It only has approx 76. We're nearly 50 judges short. It may be that Mr. Pacheco believes that by creating a crisis the legislature will address the shortfall. Unfortunately, there is no reason to believe that the Legislature will ever give this matter the attention it deserves in today's economic climate. As such, non-criminal justice must continue. This ruling is a substantial breath of fresh air. Now if only we could get the civil judges back to work on civil cases. Sigh...