Our View: Selection of judges needs tweaking

We need to re-evaluate how we select judges in Minnesota.

Judge Robert Macaulay, who has served Carlton County since 1995, is retiring next week. A statewide panel called the Commission on Judicial Selection accepts applications from lawyers who want judgeships, and recommends three of the applicants to the governor, who makes the appointment. The commission picks candidates using such criteria as integrity, maturity, temperament, legal knowledge, ability and experience, and community service.

It’s that last one that has us concerned. Applicants don’t get passed on to the governor for consideration unless they are well-qualified to be a judge, so we can rest assured whoever is selected will serve our courts well. But if community service is one of the criteria, why don’t we see the commission nominate more local community applicants?

When Judge Dale Wolf resigned, he was replaced with a lawyer from Duluth. As soon as she had the chance, she requested a transfer to a Duluth courtroom, leaving the next appointed judge to serve in Carlton County. That judge was also a lawyer from Duluth. We have no issues with either judge, but we are concerned that Carlton County (and other outlying counties such as Lake and Cook) is at risk for becoming a judicial training ground where judges come to get some experience before moving back to the Big City (Duluth). There’s no indication Judge Rebekka Stumme plans to relocate, but we’ve been burned before.

All this could be avoided if the commission considered another important factor when advancing candidates: locality. While our state is divided into 10 judicial districts, it’s no secret that much of the legal work is concentrated in the individual county. After all, each county has a courthouse, and each courthouse has judges. It just makes sense to draw from Carlton County when choosing judges to be chambered here.

So many people have stories about how retired Judge Dale Wolf or retiring Judge Robert Macaulay treated them over the years, usually fairly. We believe their decisions reflect the fact that not only did they chamber in Carlton County, they are also members of the community. We see them at the grocery store and on the street. They are our neighbors. That perspective is important for a judge and to the people they serve.

We need a judge in Carlton County who wants to stay in Carlton County. Someone who lives in Carlton County and practices in Carlton County. None of the current candidates meet those qualifications.

It’s too late for this round, but we encourage future governors to consider appointing a well-qualified local applicant to fill the next judgeship in Carlton County.