Group gives S.C. a C- in holding judges accountable

June 10, 2008

South Carolina deserves an overall grade of C- when it comes to holding judges accountable for their actions, a legal watchdog group says.

HALT, which stands for Help Abolish Legal Tyranny, contends South Carolina's method of reviewing judges' conduct is too heavily skewed in favor of sitting judges.

For example, the group said the state's judicial conduct review board has three attorneys, 14 judges and only two public members who decide ethics complaints against judges.

The system is "of the judges, for the judges, by the judges," Suzanne M. Blonder, senior counsel with HALT, said Monday. She called South Carolina's review process "one of the most insular in the nation."

The nonprofit Washington, D.C.-based organization bills itself as a reform group that wants expanded access and increased accountability in the civil justice system. Court systems in all 50 states and the District of Columbia were reviewed for their 2008 Judicial Accountability Report Card. South Carolina placed 31st overall, the group said.

None of the top five states - Washington, Connecticut, Pennsylvania, Arizona and California - scored higher than a B average. Maine and Mississippi flunked, the group said.

Some of the group's data and assumptions could be in error. The S.C. Judicial Department's Web site lists the state's judicial conduct oversight group as having 24 members in total, including 18 judges and four attorneys, but still only two public members.

Most states have as much as a third of their review committees made up of laypeople, Blonder said. "When judges are evaluating their colleagues, the public is left to wonder if dysfunctional members of the judiciary are being appropriately handled," Blonder said.

Supreme Court Chief Justice Jean Toal did not immediately respond Monday to questions. The state's Commission on Judicial Conduct's vice chairman, identified as Family Court Judge F.P. Segars-Andrews of Charleston on the state's Web site, also did not respond.

South Carolina was graded in seven areas, including online outreach, financial disclosures and public participation.

Reach Schuyler Kropf at 937-5551 or skropf@post andcourier.com.