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Pure Ethnic

Another Pro-Abortion Supreme Court Judge?

By Joe Marti

On October 18, after listening to his friends and colleagues, the commission on judicial appointments confirmed Carlos Moreno to the California supreme court in a hearing that lasted less than an hour in the fourth floor courtroom of the supreme court offices at 350 McAllister Street. "Aye, con mucho gusto" was the vote of state appellate court justice Joan Dempsey Klein as Moreno became the third Hispanic in the state's 151-year history to hold the position and the first in twelve years. The three-member commission that approved Moreno is mandated by the state constitution, which specifies that a gubernatorial appointment to the supreme court or the court of appeal is "effective when confirmed by the commission on judicial appointments."

Although Governor Gray Davis has denied that Moreno was picked because of his ethnic background, saying that "... he is the best judge for the job," there was significant lobbying from Hispanic groups, including the Mexican American Bar Association and La Raza Lawyers Association of California to hire a Hispanic judge. The latter group submitted its list of five desirable candidates for the job last summer. The list, which contained Moreno, included no conservatives, and at least two of the suggested candidates are known liberal activists. The president of that group, Luis Rodriguez, addressed the panel made up of chief justice Ronald George, state attorney general Bill Lockyer, and Klein. He stressed that in light of California's significant Hispanic population, a judge that reflected that part of the population was in order. "As a Latino, this is extremely important to all of us," said Rodriguez. The governor added that Moreno has "a boundless respect for constitutional and legal rights" and said he chose Moreno for his "excellence in ability, character and experience." The bilingual 52-year-old Democrat, Moreno replaces liberal justice Stanley Mosk, who died June 19 after 37 years on the bench. Moreno is now the only Democrat on the court because the appointments of the present justices have ranged through the two successive Republican administrations preceding Davis'.

Moreno grew up in a neighborhood near Dodger Stadium with his unmarried mother and father, who ran a wholesale produce business that is today run by Moreno's brother. The first in his family to go to college, Moreno graduated from Yale in 1970 and Stanford Law School in 1975. Moreno worked for many years as a private lawyer and as a state judge before being appointed to U.S. district court in Los Angeles. He was appointed to the federal bench in 1998 by then-President Bill Clinton.

In ascending to the supreme court, Moreno is sacrificing the lifetime tenure he enjoyed as a federal judge. The electorate must approve Moreno in November 2002 for a term lasting until 2010. Normally he would have a twelve-year term, but because he is filling the vacancy created by Stanley Mosk's death, the term is thus shortened.

On controversial issues it is the custom for justices to remain quiet and let their judicial decisions speak for themselves. But in 1998, Moreno agreed with Downey unified school district in Southern California when they sought to refuse an advertisement that displayed the Ten Commandments to be posted in the outfield of their baseball park, citing the separation of church and state. The maker of the sign intended to skirt the church/state issue by including the commandments in a paid advertisement, thus alleviating any appearance of complicity on the part of Downey. The U.S. 9th circuit court of appeals upheld Moreno's ruling, and the U.S. supreme court refused to hear the case. One notable exception to the traditional non-disclosure of legal positions came in the instance of Jesuit University of San Francisco graduate Ming Chin, who was appointed in 1996. At the time of his approval to the bench, he commented on the abortion issue, saying he believed that "it's the woman's right to choose."

Last September when Moreno was asked, he refused to answer questions on specific issues, but Davis has said that he "expects his judicial nominees to reflect his philosophy." Among other things, Davis is a staunch abortion-rights supporter. The governor has also commented that Moreno possesses "a boundless respect for constitutional and legal rights" and said he chose Moreno for his excellence in "ability, character and experience."

California Pro-Life Council spokesperson Jan Carroll wondered if Moreno's appointment would mean anything positive for the right to life movement. "The governor said he needed a pro-abortion justice. It's funny how Democrats are allowed a litmus test, but not Republicans," she said. On what this will mean for reproductive issues, she seemed cautious, saying, "It's hard to tell what will happen. [Stanley] Mosk was pro-abortion, although he was instrumental in requiring parental consent. It was a Republican appointee who wanted to review the case and ultimately wrote the opinion of the court nullifying the parental consent rule. I think we're in a very terrible spot with this court." According to Carroll, the only hope for the nominally conservative court on the subject of abortion may come at the level of government-sponsored abortions.

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