To the editor:
Our prosecutor should not be punished for his comments about a judge. Johnson County prosecutor Brad Cooper has been recommended for punishment for stating honest dissatisfaction concerning a judge (“Prosecutor receives reprimand,” Jan. 28). I feel legal professionals should be allowed free speech to openly state their honest opinions as civilians, while facing the same legal remedies for making false statements as civilians. None of the statements made by our prosecutor are outside free speech when made by civilians.
We do have some bad and lazy judges. We have judges that do not even write the court decisions they sign. These judges will assign the decision writing task to a prosecutor, defense, divorce or civil attorney. This process results is too many incredibly one-sided decisions being issued. Many a divorce order is so horribly one-sided because the attorney representing one party submits the decree rather than the judge doing his or her job to produce a fair and honest decree. We should allow and encourage those in the legal profession to publicly call out these poor judges.
We can greatly increase court integrity and move to true justice for all when legal professionals are free to give judge conduct reports. Judges would create integrity by allowing free speech, opening the courts to video, and allowing total judge complaint transparency.
We need more open and honest information to properly evaluate our judges. I thank Prosecutor Cooper for publicly speaking the truth. His speaking the truth must be an added a comfort to the victims who hoped for full justice.
Dale Marmaduke
Greenwood
