Appeals court relaxes rules for Georgia judicial campaigns

Posted 11:27AM on Tuesday 22nd October 2002 ( 22 years ago )

ATLANTA - A federal appeals court panel has removed several restrictions on judicial candidates in Georgia, saying that elections for judges should be conducted like any other political campaign. As a result, judicial candidates in Georgia may soon be able to solicit money and support openly, say what they want about their opponents and not fear official reprimands. ``The distinction between judicial elections and other types of elections has been greatly exaggerated, and we do not believe that the distinction, if there truly is one, justifies greater restrictions on speech,'' a three-judge panel of the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Atlanta wrote Friday. The court affirmed a lower court ruling that false statements in a judicial campaign are illegal only if made with ``reckless disregard'' for the truth. But the panel went further and struck down another rule that prohibits judges from personally soliciting campaign contributions. Currently, judicial candidates in Georgia cannot ask people for money or support, but they can establish an election committee for that purpose. The rule is designed to make sure candidates appear impartial. But the appeals court said the rule restricts free speech without advancing the cause of impartiality, saying ``successful candidates will feel beholden to the people who helped them get elected regardless of who did the soliciting.'' The decision stems from a 1998 suit filed by George Weaver, who ran unsuccessfully against Leah Sears for a seat on the Georgia Supreme Court. The state's Judicial Qualifications Commission publicly reprimanded Weaver for making ``false and intentionally deceptive'' statements about Sears' position on same-sex marriages and the electric chair. The Judicial Qualifications Commission will meet early next month to decide how to react to the ruling.

http://accesswdun.com/article/2002/10/188625