Supreme Court slots at stake in vote
OLYMPIA – Think the Sept. 19 primary election’s not that important, just a prelude to the real deal in November?
Think again. At least two of the three state Supreme Court races – an increasingly hot friction point between liberals and conservatives – are likely to be decided in the primary.
Among the candidates:
“A former race-car driver, raised in a cabin behind his parents’ Wapato gas station.
“A young lawyer for environmental causes, who lists as his inspiration Mohatma Gandhi.
“A Canadian-born one-time meatpacker who’s raised a flurry of donations from business and builders.
“And a Seattle attorney, Michael Johnson, who’s running no campaign at all, apparently hoping simply that voters will confuse him with the similarly named, better-known candidate Stephen Johnson. Trying to draw the distinction, the latter on Monday assured an Olympia candidates forum that he’s “the serious Johnson in this race.”
“It’s the best system in the United States: The people get to choose their judges,” said Norman Ericson, an Olympia judge running for one of the seats.
Nonetheless, he said, his five-way race for a single seat has become a “perfect storm”: a “totally partisan” race for a non-partisan seat. Nearly $700,000 has poured into the race for the three seats, much of it from businesses and unions. Ericson is refusing to accept campaign donations or endorsements, and says he has one dollar in his campaign war chest only because the state’s election finance watchdog told him he had to set up a campaign bank account.
This year’s candidates break down into three camps: incumbents running on their records and experience, property-rights conservatives who say the high court is overstepping its bounds and rewriting the law, and lesser-known candidates trying to campaign free of the perceived taint of political donations or endorsements.
The candidates:
Position 8
John Groen
Age: 47
Education: Bachelor’s in political science from Claremont McKenna College, law degree from University of the Pacific.
Raised: Born in Canada, Groen was raised in Kennewick.
Home: near Redmond.
Experience: A naturalized citizen whose pre-law jobs included cherry-picking and meat-packing, Groen was hired after law school as a property rights lawyer at the Pacific Legal Foundation, whose mission is “to rescue liberty from the grasp of government power.” For the past decade, he’s been in private practice, inheriting the clients of now-Justice Richard Sanders. Most of his work, Groen says, is “representing individuals in their legal battles with government.”
Major endorsements or contributors: Builders, a lumber company, a cruise line, a dock company.
Campaign themes: “It’s becoming very apparent that the majority of the court has been willing to legislate from the bench or to disregard constitutional rights,” Groen says. “I bring a commitment to a judicial philosophy of restraint: to apply the law as written, as opposed to rewriting the law.”
Also, Groen’s opponent, 70-year-old Chief Justice Gerry Alexander, would face mandatory retirement at 75, a year before his six-year term ends. That would allow Gov. Chris Gregoire to appoint a replacement. “That’s not right,” said Groen. “It really allows for exactly the kind of political appointment that the independence of the judiciary is supposed to be insulated from.”
Most influential person: Personally, his wife. Professionally, it’s Robert K. Best, a law school professor of Groen’s and former president of the Pacific Legal Foundation.
Book most recently read: Law books. Too busy with the campaign to read for pleasure.
Gerry Alexander
Age: 70
Education: Bachelor’s and law degrees from UW.
Raised: Olympia.
Resides: Olympia.
Experience: Private practice from 1964 to 1973, then superior court judge in Thurston and Mason counties for 11 years. In 1984, he was elected to an appeals-court seat in Tacoma. After 10 years there, he in 1994 was elected to the state Supreme Court. He’s been the chief justice for six years – a state record.
Major endorsements or contributors: the state Democratic Central Committee, labor unions, the Association of Washington Business, Washington Education Association, state Labor Council, Washington Conservation Voters.
Campaign themes: Alexander said he’s as energetic as ever, and wants to continue pushing for better jury pay, more support for public defenders, and better civil legal services for the poor. “The biggest thing I have going for me is my experience. I don’t think I’m any smarter than I was when I became a judge, but I think I’m wiser.”
Most influential person: “My best friend and most loyal supporter in my judicial career, my brother Bob. Nobody could’ve asked for a better younger brother.”
Book most recently read: “Team of Rivals: the Political Genius of Abraham Lincoln,” by Doris Kearns Goodwin.
Position 9
Jeanette Burrage
Age: 53
Education: Bachelor’s in business administration and law degree, both from UW.
Raised: Burien.
Resides: Des Moines.
Experience: A one-term state lawmaker in the early 1980s, Burrage is the former executive director of the Constitution-oriented Northwest Legal Foundation, a former King County Superior Court judge and now works as a general private-practice attorney.
Major endorsements or contributors: Only recently declared her candidacy and so far has raised $4,350.
Campaign themes: “I will protect individual rights on the court more than the incumbent. I consider him a moderate. And when it comes to protecting individual rights, I think that people deserve more than a moderate.” At candidates forums, she likes to note that her name rhymes with “courage.”
Most influential person: Bob Hale, former president of the Northwest Legal Foundation.
Book most recently read: “The Heir Hunter,” a mystery novel.
Tom Chambers
Age: 62
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Washington State University, law degree from University of Washington.
Raised: In a cottage behind his parents’ Wapato gas station.
Resides: Issaquah
Experience: Construction law, family law, criminal law, in sole or small partnerships, as well as personal injury trial work. Elected to the high court in 2000.
Major endorsements or contributors: Police and firefighters unions, business groups, Building Industry Association of Washington, state labor council, Washington Conservation Voters.
Campaign themes: “I think that I’ve been a strong voice on the court for individual rights and for property rights and I would like that voice to continue to be heard.” He also notes that he’s the only sitting justice with Eastern Washington roots.
Most influential person: His father. “I think that all of us are who we are either because of or in spite of our father.”
Book most recently read: “The Spirit of St. Louis” about Charles Lindbergh.
Position 2
Michael L. Johnson
Age: 46
Education: Bachelor’s from Plymouth State University, law degree from University of Washington.
Raised: New Jersey.
Resides: Seattle.
Experience: Works for a small Seattle firm that does elder law, guardianship cases and general civil litigation.
Major endorsements or contributors: Has publicly said he’s not seeking endorsements or contributions.
Campaign themes: Unknown. Johnson would not respond to repeated calls and an e-mail sent to his office seeking comment. Most of the information in this section is from the Web site lawyers.com. Johnson was a surprise candidate who announced shortly before the filing deadline, leading to accusations that he was simply hoping that voters would confuse him with candidate Stephen Johnson, who’d been campaigning for months.
Most influential person: Unknown.
Book most recently read: Unknown.
Stephen Johnson
Age: 66
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Whitman College, law degree from University of Washington.
Raised: Issaquah.
Resides: Kent.
Experience: Three years at a small law practice in Yakima, then moved to a Kent law practice for 30 years. Handled real estate, commercial, estate and trust work. State senator since 1995.
Major endorsements or contributors: Washington Farm Bureau, moderate Republicans, state GOP, builders, business groups, Democratic Lt. Gov. Brad Owen, Republican former gubernatorial candidate Dino Rossi.
Campaign themes: Citing recent rulings, Johnson thinks the court should protect private property more, allow tougher penalties on government agencies that illegally withhold public records from citizens and should better defend citizens’ right to challenge new laws with ballot measures. Instead of applying laws as they’re written, he said, the court is wrongly trying to rewrite them. “I think judicial restraint is the proper way to go, and I don’t see that happening.”
Most influential person: His father.
Book most recently read: Biography of New York Justice Billings Learned Hand, 1872-1961: “They said he was the finest judge never to be appointed to the U.S. Supreme Court.”
Richard Smith
Age: 39
Education: Bachelor’s in business administration from University of Michigan, law degree from University of Colorado.
Raised: Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
Resides: Seattle.
Experience: Works at a small Seattle law firm specializing in environmental litigation, such as suits to protect Caspian terns in the Columbia River Delta and to regulate storm water runoff into Puget Sound.
Major endorsements or contributors: Not seeking endorsements and not accepting donations. “I think the independence of the judiciary is an extremely important matter … I’m concerned about the relatively recent influx of special-interest money into judicial campaigns.”
Campaign themes: “I’m an independent candidate. I’m beholden to no one in any way … I don’t know what my odds of getting elected are. I think it’s possible. I think I’ve got a compelling statement to make.”
Most influential person: Mahatma Gandhi.
Book most recently read: “Everything is Illuminated” by Jonathan Safran Foer.
Norman Ericson
Age: 61
Education: Bachelor’s from UW, MBA from University of Puget Sound, law degree from Gonzaga University.
Raised: Olympia.
Resides: Olympia.
Experience: A former state Supreme Court law clerk, Ericson’s been a state administrative review judge for 31 years. As such, his specialty is government law.
Major endorsements or contributors: He’s not accepting either, saying that judicial candidates should be free of party backing, campaign donations and even newspaper endorsements. “I think it’s time to draw a line in the sand,” he said. “Are we going to have nonpartisan races or are we going to have partisan mudslinging?”
Campaign themes: “I’m totally open minded.” With his long experience in government law, he said, “I can help ensure that the decisions of the court protect our individual rights.” Says he’s an independent voice for common sense. “I think what people are looking for is a full and fair-minded opportunity to be heard.”
Most influential person: “My wife, Edanna. She’s been very supportive over the years.”
Book most recently read: “Breaking Blue” by Timothy Egan, about police corruption in Depression-era Spokane.
Susan Owens
Age: 57
Education: Bachelor’s degree from Duke University, law degree from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.
Raised: Kinston, N.C. Resides: Clallam County.
Experience: Tribal court judge for 11 years, district court judge in Clallam County for 19 years, elected to the state Supreme Court in 2000.
Major endorsements or contributors: Indian tribes, labor unions, lawyers, law firms.
Campaign themes: “My primary qualification is that I have 25 years of judicial experience in the state of Washington.” Says she also has a passion for reining in domestic violence, and notes that she’s a rural judge, mother, and “an independent voice for common sense.”
Most influential person: “My parents.”
Book most recently read: “Blue Shoes and Happiness,” the latest novel about a Botswana women’s detective agency.