By Howard Fischer | Capitol Media Services
A trial judge recused himself Tuesday from deciding the legality of a ballot measure that would give him and his colleagues lifetime appointments.
But the move leaves unanswered who is qualified to hear the case.
Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Randall Warner stepped away after noting that the lawsuit involves a bid by lawmakers to scrap the 50-year-old system that requires judges appointed by the governor to have to stand for reelection on a regular basis. That gives voters a chance to decide if they want to keep them around for another four years – six for the Supreme Court – or turn them out and give the current governor another pick.
Instead, the ballot proposal advanced by Sen. David Gowan, R-Sierra Vista, would say that once they are appointed, they don’t have to worry about voters. That would allow them to remain until the mandatory retirement age of 70.
What brought the issue into Warner’s court Tuesday is the proposal is being challenged both over whether its title is misleading and whether it is an unconstitutional effort by lawmakers to put multiple issues into a single ballot measure.
