Our View: Bradbury could shake up system
- Idaho Statesman
Edition Date: 05/13/08
John Bradbury wants to fix a court system that is too cumbersome and too costly for the average Idahoan.
He is running for a seat on the Idaho Supreme Court because he wants to fix the system. His ideas - and his career's experience as an attorney and a judge in a sprawling North Idaho judicial district - make him a strong choice in the May 27 election.
We have no particular quarrel with the incumbent, Joel Horton, appointed by Gov. Butch Otter last fall. He has made no discernible missteps in seven months on the job, and the soft-spoken Horton has the resume and the temperament for the job.
Horton would be a solid, safe stay-the-course choice. But Bradbury recognizes that part of the Supreme Court's job is to govern the court system. He would shake up the status quo, and for the better:
Bradbury advocates using televised testimony in the courts in order to bring down the costs of hiring and flying in expert witnesses. Unlike the criminal courts, where defendants are represented by public defenders, the civil courts have become "the province of the privileged," says Bradbury.
During five-plus years as a judge in Idaho's 2nd Judicial District - a five-county jurisdiction larger than the state of Maryland - Bradbury has gone out of his way to move court proceedings from his main office in Grangeville. He routinely holds hearings in Orofino and Nezperce to save people a trip.
Bradbury recognizes that convenience isn't just a concern for rural residents. He supports night courts and setting up magistrate courts in Eagle and Meridian - recognizing that, in order to make these ideas reality, the Supreme Court would need to go to the Legislature to lobby for a share of scarce dollars. "It ought to be on the table," he said.
Bradbury also promises to push for transparency. He wants to remove the shroud of secrecy from the Idaho Judicial Council, the panel which reviews complaints against judges. Sweeping exemptions to open government laws cover the council's meetings and records.
Bradbury is running as an outsider, a role he relishes. Horton is the better-liked choice of the legal establishment, as evidenced by a recent and suspect Idaho State Bar survey. Lawyers across the state - even in Bradbury's 2nd Judicial District - gave Horton higher grades for integrity and independence; knowledge and understanding of the law; judicial temperament and demeanor; and legal ability and experience. Yet 63 percent of the responses came from the Boise area's 4th Judicial District, where Horton is well-known as a former magistrate judge and district judge. And 46 percent of respondents took no position on Bradbury, because they don't know him.
In 2002, Bradbury ran for district judge - again, he said, without the support of attorneys. He won a contested race. Four years later, he ran unopposed. Unlike the Bar survey, this speaks eloquently to Bradbury's track record, and his viability as a Supreme Court candidate.
"Our View" is the editorial position of the Idaho Statesman. It is an unsigned opinion expressing the consensus of the Statesman's editorial board. To comment on an editorial or suggest a topic, e-mail editorial@idahostatesman.com.
