Judge Not, O Person of Pallor

     It would seem that a state Representative from Rhode Island fully believes, when it comes to who can serve as a judge, that “once you go Black, you never go back”. Well, not just Black, but any “person of color”, according to H5302 that was introduced to the 2017 legislative session:

SECTION 1. Chapter 8-16.1 of the General Laws entitled “Judicial Selection” is hereby amended by adding thereto the following section:

8-16.1-8. Replacement judges.

Notwithstanding any provisions of this chapter to the contrary, whenever a judge from the superior court, family court, district court, traffic tribunal, workers’ compensation court or municipal court who is a person of color leaves the bench, for whatever reason, their replacement must be a person of color, so as not to diminish the number of judges of color in that court.

SECTION 2. This act shall take effect upon passage.

     This not only runs afoul of the Equal Protection Clause, but Rhode Island’s own Constitution which explicitly bans “discrimination by the state” due to the “reason of race, gender or handicap”.

     Oh well, it’s not like a little thing like a constitution or two matters anymore…

Rhode Island Legislative Bill H5302 (2017) by ThePoliticalHat on Scribd

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