fresno elections 2008

The court system and the day-to-day business of all judges should be open and transparent to the public. The Superior Court bench should be accountable to the community which it serves, no differently than any other elected officials. While the independence of the judiciary and the privacy rights of litigants and others that play a role in the court system must be safeguarded, this must be done with an eye towards the communities right to know what their judicial system is doing and how it is being done. The media plays an important and essential role in disseminating this information to the public.

For this reason, communication and understanding between the media and the courts is essential. The courts need to keep the media educated and updated as to how and why the court conducts its business the way it does. An open dialogue between the media and the courts is something that the community as a whole would benefit from and should expect from its elected officials.

The nature of our court system often casts jurors, defendants, litigants, victims and witnesses into public view whether willingly or not. Each case and each situation requires a judge to carefully balance the interests of all participants in the court system with the public’s right to know. As a judge I will be committed to doing this in a fair, thoughtful, and conscientious manner.