Shedd Nomination Criticized by Civil Rights Advocates, New York Times
Feature Story by Menna Demessie - 8/9/2002
The nomination of U.S. District Judge Dennis W. Shedd to the United States Court of Appeals for the 4th Circuit has generated serious concern among activists and impartial observers about the confirmation process and prospects for just enforcement of civil rights laws.Radio talk show host and political commentator Tavis Smiley warned the African American community in particular of their need to pay attention to the policy implications of the confirmations of federal court justices who are appointed for life.
"The 4th circuit has the highest percentage of black folk of any other district in the nation and we didn't get somebody in the white house who's appointing moderate judges, so one at a time we've got to chalk up these victories."
The Leadership Conference on Civil Rights (LCCR) has expressed serious concern about Shedd's nomination and drafted a letter to the Senate Judiciary Committee providing an in-depth critical review of shortcomings in the confirmation process and in Shedd's own record in employment discrimination cases and other areas of civil rights law.
The need for a careful review of judges' past rulings was emphasized in a New York Times editorial, "The Secret History of Judges": "The Senate should place the burden on judicial nominees to deliver a complete record of all past opinions, published and unpublished, as well as an accounting of all the other cases they have decided. When the opinions themselves cannot be located, the nominee should be compelled to produce docket entries, descriptions of cases and ? where they exist and are the only record ? media accounts. The Senate should make it clear that it will deal sternly with nominees who withhold relevant parts of their judicial record."
