Post by EagleDad on Jul 19, 2010 7:09:21 GMT -6
It's time for Judge Popejoy to explain
www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=394682
A judge takes on solemn obligations when he ascends to the bench.
As the American Bar Association's Moral Code of Judicial Conduct rightly points out, "Public confidence in the judiciary is eroded by irresponsible or improper conduct by judges."
That code further states, "A judge must expect to be the subject of constant public scrutiny. A judge must therefore accept restrictions on the judge's conduct that might be viewed as burdensome by the ordinary citizen and should do so freely and willingly."
Those admonitions take on special relevance in the case of Judge Kenneth L. Popejoy of the DuPage County Circuit Court. He is charged with reckless driving, failure to give information after striking an unattended motor vehicle and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.
Prosecutors say that on June 29, Popejoy fled the scene of an accident after a car he was driving struck a parked Jeep Grand Cherokee in Glen Ellyn. During the course of the three-mile drive to his home in Wheaton, police say, Popejoy is suspected of running at least one stop sign and narrowly missing a teenage jogger.
We're particularly taken by the allegation that he left the scene of an accident without reporting it. If true, that is akin to covering up a crime.
How could a judge whose obligation is to uphold the law fail to consciously obey the law? A traffic accident may be a mistake, but leaving the scene is a willful decision.
From all indications before this, Popejoy has had an exemplary legal career, which has included 13 years on the bench and experience before that as a village prosecutor in Glen Ellyn.
James M. McCluskey and James P. Marsh wrote in a profile in the Journal of the DuPage County Bar Association in 2007 that Popejoy has two passions. One, as a runner who was so great in the mile that he has been inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame.
"His other passion is the law," McCluskey and Marsh wrote, adding later that "his work history reflects his beliefs in hard work and ethical conduct."
We believe Judge Popejoy has an obligation to the public and an obligation to the court to explain himself. And if he fails to do so, he abdicates his credibility as a judge.
He may have a good explanation. He may not.
But he must realize that if he is to honor and protect the court, he has an obligation that extends beyond his own self-interest, beyond his own legal defense.
As the Illinois Judicial Code of Conduct states, "An independent and honorable judiciary is indispensable to justice in our society. A judge should participate in establishing, maintaining and enforcing, and should personally observe, high standards of conduct so that the integrity and independence of the judiciary is preserved."
www.dailyherald.com/story/?id=394682
A judge takes on solemn obligations when he ascends to the bench.
As the American Bar Association's Moral Code of Judicial Conduct rightly points out, "Public confidence in the judiciary is eroded by irresponsible or improper conduct by judges."
That code further states, "A judge must expect to be the subject of constant public scrutiny. A judge must therefore accept restrictions on the judge's conduct that might be viewed as burdensome by the ordinary citizen and should do so freely and willingly."
Those admonitions take on special relevance in the case of Judge Kenneth L. Popejoy of the DuPage County Circuit Court. He is charged with reckless driving, failure to give information after striking an unattended motor vehicle and failure to reduce speed to avoid an accident.
Prosecutors say that on June 29, Popejoy fled the scene of an accident after a car he was driving struck a parked Jeep Grand Cherokee in Glen Ellyn. During the course of the three-mile drive to his home in Wheaton, police say, Popejoy is suspected of running at least one stop sign and narrowly missing a teenage jogger.
We're particularly taken by the allegation that he left the scene of an accident without reporting it. If true, that is akin to covering up a crime.
How could a judge whose obligation is to uphold the law fail to consciously obey the law? A traffic accident may be a mistake, but leaving the scene is a willful decision.
From all indications before this, Popejoy has had an exemplary legal career, which has included 13 years on the bench and experience before that as a village prosecutor in Glen Ellyn.
James M. McCluskey and James P. Marsh wrote in a profile in the Journal of the DuPage County Bar Association in 2007 that Popejoy has two passions. One, as a runner who was so great in the mile that he has been inducted into the Chicagoland Sports Hall of Fame.
"His other passion is the law," McCluskey and Marsh wrote, adding later that "his work history reflects his beliefs in hard work and ethical conduct."
We believe Judge Popejoy has an obligation to the public and an obligation to the court to explain himself. And if he fails to do so, he abdicates his credibility as a judge.
He may have a good explanation. He may not.
But he must realize that if he is to honor and protect the court, he has an obligation that extends beyond his own self-interest, beyond his own legal defense.
As the Illinois Judicial Code of Conduct states, "An independent and honorable judiciary is indispensable to justice in our society. A judge should participate in establishing, maintaining and enforcing, and should personally observe, high standards of conduct so that the integrity and independence of the judiciary is preserved."
