Litigation

IA Legislators Urged to Drop Impeachment

By Peter Hardin

A group that supports Iowa?s merit-based system for choosing judges has presented to a top Iowa Republican legislator a petition urging legislators to scuttle any idea of impeaching four state Supreme Court justices.

The group, Justice Not Politics, delivered a petition with more than 3,200 signatures, the Waterloo Cedar Falls Courier reported.

But Republican state Rep. Glen Massie was unswayed, and said he will proceed with an impeachment effort  “at the appropriate time.”

“We can’t just sit back on our hands and assume that wisdom will prevail,” former Lt. Gov. Sally Pederson, of the Justice Not Politics group, said of the petition effort.

In November, Iowans voted to deny re-election to three justices who participated in a controversial ruling that permitted same-sex marriage. Some conservatives have been pushing to impeach the remaining four justices. The court opinion in the case was unanimous. Learn more about the controversy by checking out Gavel Grab.

Full post as published by The Gavel on February 11, 2011 (boomark / email).