Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

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Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby cmsellers » Fri Nov 09, 2018 5:53 am

Houston's juvenile courts have some of the highest incarceration rated in Texas, such that Houston accounts for one fifth of all juvenile incarcerations in Texas. This is because of two Republican juvenile court judges with very harsh sentencing tendencies. Democrats swept the judgeships in Harris County last election and all Republican judges including those two lost their seats.

In response, one of those judges, Glenn Devlin, asked all juvenile defendants coming before him for detention hearings (sort of like bail for juveniles) if they planned to kill anyone. If they said "no," he then released them, claiming that was what the voters wanted. This temper tantrum has horrified everyone, both prosecutors and various justice reform groups who were already critical.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby Kivutar » Fri Nov 09, 2018 6:26 am

Did any of them say "yes"?
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby cmsellers » Fri Nov 09, 2018 6:28 am

Not yet, but he only had seven of these hearings so far. If he's going to do this until his replacement is sworn in, I bet at least one smartass does.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby mancityfooty » Fri Nov 09, 2018 7:40 am

well, it's texass, so there's that.
and he seems to be a bitter little thing, so...yeah.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby Deathclaw_Puncher » Fri Nov 09, 2018 7:52 am

Why even have partisan judicial elections, anyway? In California, judges don't run against another person, but to be reinstated, and serve 12 year terms.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby ghijkmnop » Fri Nov 09, 2018 3:50 pm

Redacted
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Last edited by ghijkmnop on Thu Mar 14, 2019 2:50 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby cmsellers » Fri Nov 09, 2018 3:55 pm

Why have judicial elections at all?

I like the Massachusetts system. A candidate list is prepared by the MBA. The governor picks from the list. The Governor's Council, a special elected body for picking judges, confirms them. This both shields judges from the fickle winds of public sentiment and means you don't have people voting for one party in the legislature because of the judges they'll pick.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby Absentia » Fri Nov 09, 2018 5:05 pm

ghijkmnop wrote:This speaks to a much larger concern I have regarding this election: What will all the vindictive losing lame ducks (such as Scott Walker) do over the next 75 days?


They can always do what the North Carolina GOP did when they lost their last governor's race. The legislature passed a bill stripping the governor of most of his appointment powers, and the outgoing Republican governor cheerfully signed it.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby Deathclaw_Puncher » Fri Nov 09, 2018 7:37 pm

cmsellers wrote:Why have judicial elections at all?


Because sometimes that judge "sees himself" in rapists.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby cmsellers » Fri Nov 09, 2018 7:58 pm

A. That was a judicial recall, not a judicial election.
B. Given that judges are much more likely to be ousted for supporting gay marriage or being too lenient towards black youths, prohibiting even recall elections is a tradeoff I'm willing to make.
C. In case anyone didn't know what DP is talking about: California had its first successful judicial recall in decades for Aaron Persky after he gave student athlete Brock Turner a six-month sentence after he was caught in flagrante while raping an unconscious woman and it was subsequently revealed he had a history of similarly-lenient sentences for white guys from affluent backgrounds.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby Krashlia » Sat Nov 10, 2018 2:57 pm

cmsellers wrote:In response, one of those judges, Glenn Devlin, asked all juvenile defendants coming before him for detention hearings (sort of like bail for juveniles) if they planned to kill anyone. If they said "no," he then released them, claiming that was what the voters wanted. This temper tantrum has horrified everyone, both prosecutors and various justice reform groups who were already critical.


"Oh?... Oh, JESUS! What have you done?! HIDE THE HORSES! HIDE NANA!!!"

(smarmy) "*Hur-hur* I thought you liberals wanted crimi-"

Activist: NO, Glenn! We wanted proportionate justice, functional defenders, and reform programs for low level offenders! Not releasing notorious psychopaths!"

Observer: You just done released The Grandma Horse killer!

Director of Public Safety: By Gawd, (shakes head) Alert the Senior Centers.

(rapidly growing chaos and panic)

(smirk melts away) "But...But I gave you what you-"

Observer 2: He kept trophies of several hundred dentures, you ass!

Rancher: The wife just called. She tol' me the barn was empty. (breaks down crying) The barn's empty.

Bailiff: Damnit Where the Sheriff?! Tell him to stop the shipment! Its not Glue! I repeat: NOT. GLUE.

(mouth ajar and eyes blank in shock) "...But I thought I was a good judge"

(Entire world collapsing around him)

"... A good... judge."
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby Crimson847 » Sat Nov 10, 2018 8:19 pm

"But...it was funny dammit! It was really funny!"

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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby iMURDAu » Sun Nov 11, 2018 1:59 am

I don't think he understands that he already demonstrated why the voters went another way and doesn't need to prove how correct they were. But this is what judges do. Whatever they want. Sometimes you get one without integrity.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby cmsellers » Sun Nov 11, 2018 5:00 pm

So apparently he has now decided to just not show up indefinitely and without notice.
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Re: Judge loses re-election, releases all juv. defendants

Postby Krashlia » Mon Nov 12, 2018 12:58 am

cmsellers wrote:So apparently he has now decided to just not show up indefinitely and without notice.


File a missing persons report and put whoever is supposed to act in his stead, should he become unable to perform, on the bench... Then relieve that guy of his office.
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