Castille in charge
New Pennsylvania Supreme Court Chief Justice Ronald D. Castille: That has a nice ring to it after the final years of retiring Chief Justice Ralph J. Cappy’s tenure were plagued by frequent misjudgments that cost the state judiciary much credibility.Castille now has the opportunity restore the court’s standing with Pennsylvanians. Castille can also start repairing the damage to his reputation for writing the majority opinion for the court to receive a controversial pay raise. It’s hard to question Castille’s resume. He has been on the state’s high court since 1993. He is a former Philadelphia district attorney with 15 years of experience as a prosecutor. Castille is also a Marine Corps veteran who lost a leg in Vietnam, but he worked hard to recover and excel in his profession.
“Ron Castille will be a great leader to take this court to places that it’s never been before,” Gov. Ed Rendell said at Castille’s swearing-in Jan. 14.
The Supreme Court needs more than lofty expectations. Castille, 53, seemed to understand this when he told an audience in the Supreme Court’s chamber at Philadelphia City Hall that America’s courts must be independent of the executive and legislative branches of government.
This is where Cappy failed badly. Cappy sat down with legislators and administrative aides and helped craft the notorious 2005 legislative pay raise that also awarded raises to state judges.
Then, after the subsequent public outcry, Cappy wrote a column that appeared in newspapers across the state, including the Erie Times-News, aggressively defending the pay raise and his behind-the-scenes efforts to make it happen.
When the Legislature repealed the pay raise in the face of public fury, the Supreme Court ruled 5-1 that the Legislature couldn’t take away the judicial pay raise.
Cappy recused himself from the case, and Castille wrote the majority decision that brought the opinion of the court even lower.
Castille is now in perfect position to start trying to restore the judiciary’s credibility.
The new chief justice can start rebuilding the walls that should exist between the executive, legislative and judicial branches.
He can make it clear there will be no closed-door meetings with legislators and administrative staff.
Plenty is on the line for Castille and the Supreme Court. Let’s hope Jan. 14 was this court’s new independence day.