Judicial selection: from bad to worse, says Daughtrey

Larry Daughtrey walks us through the maze of judicial selection in Tennessee. The current method is pretty bad, but the spectre of direct judicial elections and the campaigning that would come with it would probably be a lot worse.

"In states that permit partisan elections, like Texas, Wisconsin and Mississippi, the process can be appalling. It is so bad that John Grisham has written a novel about it.

Special interests line up on each side, usually with doctors, big business and insurance companies on one, and plaintiff lawyers and unions on the other. It becomes a spending donnybrook full of misleading and negative advertising. It forces judges into the uncomfortable position — for some — of raising money from those who appear in their courts.

If ordinary citizens think justice goes to the highest bidder, they may be dead right."