As a nation turns its eyes uneasily toward a criminal case in Sanford, Fla., St. Louis and Missouri have reason to praise a positive development in our justice system. Last week Gov. Jay Nixon appointed Judge Angela T. Quigless to one of two open seats on the appellate bench in the Eastern District of Missouri. Nixon cited her extensive experience as a judge dating back to 1995. “With all of her experience, she will have a very broad view,” Mike Wolff, former chief justice of the Missouri Supreme Court told us, before adding the highest opinion one legal mind can offer another: “I really look forward to reading her opinions.”
Even without the prism of race, this would be an appointment to hail. Given that Quigless replaces Judge George W. Draper, who was appointed by Nixon to the Missouri Supreme Court, her appointment is critical to preserving what shred of racial diversity we have on the appellate bench for the half of the state that includes St. Louis. One African American out of 14 judges on the appellate bench for the district that includes the state’s most populous city with the largest black population remains an embarrassment, but to let Draper’s departure leave the Eastern District with not even one single black jurist on the appellate court would have been an unacceptable insult.
The last five appointments to this court were five white men; Nixon appointed the last two. During the governor’s tenure he has appointed over 40 judges, and even with Quigless only four have been African-American. We strongly encourage more African-American applicants as judicial positions come open, and we will keep our eye on Gov. Nixon, a veteran lawyer himself who knows better than anyone the weight and power wielded by judges.
Justice be done
It’s impossible to feel good about a story where an unarmed young man was killed for no reason, but we are proud of the parents of Trayvon Martin, their attorney Ben Crump, the Rev. Al Sharpton and the immense number of everyday citizens who did not let Trayvon’s story die with him. Just at our deadline last week, the special prosecutor announced that Trayvon’s killer George Zimmerman had been arrested and charged with second-degree murder. Zimmerman, who already has made a number of foolish moves regarding his legal counsel and other aspects of this case, is expected to plead not-guilty. On Monday, the attorney for Zimmerman Monday asked the judge in Florida’s Stand Your Ground shooting case to step down, citing a possible conflict of interest.
Along with other members of the National Newspaper Publishers Association, we were on the phone with Rev. Sharpton, journalist George E. Curry and Trayvon’s parents on the eve of the first major public demonstration in Sanford. Sharpton’s maturity and savvy as a civil rights leader were abundantly in evidence during this conference call. Emotions were pitched high. Like most people in our community, black publishers were in an angry and combative mood. Sharpton picked this up right away and said, “Look, we’re not selling any wolf tickets. We’re just saying what should be done. This man should be arrested and tried for murder.” Now Zimmerman has been arrested and will be tried for murder. Let’s remain watchful as we respect the criminal legal process that has been initiated, thanks to our collective insistence that justice be done.
