McAuliffe names longtime Fairfax judge to Va. Supreme Court

[mahatmakanejeeves]

McAuliffe names longtime Fairfax judge to Va. Supreme Court

Posted: Monday, July 27, 2015 11:02 am | Updated: 12:15 pm, Mon Jul 27, 2015.
Associated Press

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — Gov. Terry McAuliffe has appointed Fairfax Circuit Judge Jane Marum Roush to the Virginia Supreme Court.

Roush will succeed Justice LeRoy F. Millette Jr., who is retiring at the end of the month.

The appointment, announced Monday, requires General Assembly confirmation. Fairfax County's 13-member legislative delegation, which includes both Democrats and Republicans, recommended Roush in a letter to McAuliffe in May.

Roush is best known for presiding over the 2003 trial of D.C. sniper Lee Boyd Malvo, who is serving life in prison.

Fairfax judge Jane Marum Roush named to Virginia Supreme Court

Local
By Tom Jackman July 27 

Fairfax Circuit Court Judge Jane Marum Roush was appointed Monday to the Virginia Supreme Court by Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) in a recess appointment that bypassed the often politically charged selection process of the General Assembly.

Roush’s appointment ends a five-year period in which no judges from the state’s most populous jurisdiction were on either of the state’s appeals courts. She is the first Fairfax judge selected to the seven-member Supreme Court since Barbara M. Keenan in 1991. Keenan became a federal appeals judge in 2010. No judge from Fairfax has sat on the 11-member Virginia Court of Appeals since 2006.

[beac]

1. And the Republican toddlers in the VA Congress are refusing to confirm her and

have selected their own judge. This is 100% political and purely a way for them slap the governor in the face.

Roush had the full support of both the Republicans and Dems in NoVA. It's the GOP leadership (Tidewater-based) that are throwing an eminently qualified justice under the bus to score a petty political point.

After announcing they would replace Roush with their own pick, Repubs have been scrambling like mad to find some actual reason to oppose her, and have found none. She is far more qualified than the man they want to install.

I don't live in VA anymore, but I urge all of you to call your GOP rep (if you have one) and ask how they can justify ruining a woman's career because they want to behave like frustrated toddlers in a sandbox.

http://www.washingtonpost.com/local/virginia-politics/va-republicans-to-fire-mcauliffes-supreme-court-pick-install-their-own/2015/08/03/507ff4f2-39e6-11e5-b3ac-8a79bc44e5e2_story.html

[mahatmakanejeeves]

2. Battle over Va. justice heats up as Democrats demand hearings

Battle over Va. justice heats up as Democrats demand hearings

By Jenna Portnoy August 10 at 7:55 PM 

RICHMOND — Virginia Democrats and outraged lawyers increased the pressure Monday to try to force Republicans to reconsider their plan to oust a Supreme Court justice appointed last month by Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D).

Democratic leaders called on Republicans who control the General Assembly to hold public hearings to consider McAuliffe’s pick as well as their own for the next justice of the state’s highest court.

But Republicans stood their ground, refusing to interview former Fairfax Circuit Court judge Jane Marum Roush, who has been on the job for a week, when they return to Richmond next week to act on the vacancy on the state’s highest court.

Days after Roush was sworn in for the interim post, Republicans announced they would install Virginia Court of Appeals Judge Rossie D. Alston Jr. to a full term. ... On Monday, House Speaker William J. Howell (R-Stafford) said he would stick to his promise.
....

{Va. Republicans to oust McAuliffe’s Supreme Court pick, install their own}

[mahatmakanejeeves]

3. Va. GOP’s pick for judge may not have filed conflict of interest forms

Va. GOP’s pick for judge may not have filed conflict of interest forms

Virginia Politics
By Jenna Portnoy August 15 at 8:00 AM
@jennaportnoy

RICHMOND — The judge at the center of the latest feud between Virginia Republicans and Gov. Terry McAuliffe (D) apparently neglected for two years to disclose potential conflicts of interest as required by state law.

The office of the secretary of the commonwealth, which retains the records, cannot locate economic interest forms for Virginia Court of Appeals Judge Rossie D. Alston Jr. for two of the last five years.

Leaders of the GOP-controlled House and Senate say they plan to elect Alston to the state Supreme Court next week, replacing a different judge whom McAuliffe appointed last month on an interim basis. ... McAuliffe appointed former Fairfax Circuit Court judge Jane Marum Roush to an interim post that will expire 30 days after the start of the next legislative session, which begins Monday, unless lawmakers affirm the appointment.

In Virginia, judicial appointments are the domain of the General Assembly, not even subject to signature or veto by the governor. However, the governor may fill judicial vacancies on an interim basis when the {legislature} is in recess. It is up to lawmakers to affirm or replace the governor’s recess appointments when they reconvene.

[mahatmakanejeeves]

4. Virginia Senate adjourns, after rejecting GOP's court pick

Virginia Senate adjourns, after rejecting GOP's court pick

Posted: Monday, August 17, 2015 5:50 pm | Updated: 6:45 pm, Mon Aug 17, 2015.
Associated Press

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A rancorous partisan battle over Gov. Terry McAuliffe's pick for the state Supreme Court quickly escalated Monday and could be headed to court.

The fight also effectively killed any chances that lawmakers will be able to redraw the state's congressional map in time to meet a deadline imposed by a panel of federal judges.

Senate Democrats, with the help of a retiring moderate GOP state senator, abruptly adjourned Monday after rejecting a GOP-favored pick for the state Supreme Court.

Democrats believe their sudden adjournment gives the Democratic governor the ability to reappoint Justice Jane Marum Roush next month, after her initial brief appointment expires.
....

Associated Press Writer Larry O'Dell contributed to this report.