Saturday, February 14, 2009
The End of Payola Justice??
The Supreme Court is set to hear the case of a hard-boiled, stiff-necked West Virginia coal mine owner who 'invested' $3 million to defeat a judge who'd previously ruled against him. The New York Times explains:
Well, it's been said before that justice is only for those who can afford it. Maybe it's time for fair minded people to admit this is just plain corrupt. Justice should not go to the highest bidder; and judges should not be elected but be appointed by either state legislatures, governors or preferably both.In 2004, he spent $3 million on tough advertisements attacking a justice of the State Supreme Court who was seeking re-election. Some of the advertisements said the justice had agreed to free a sex offender.
[...]
Brent D. Benjamin won that election and went on to join the 3-to-2 majority that threw out a $50 million jury verdict against Mr. Blankenship’s company, Massey Energy.
[...]
The question of whether Justice Benjamin should have disqualified himself is now before the United States Supreme Court.
// posted by Howling Latina @ 8:16 PM 
