Voters Should Vote YES to Retain Delaware County & Superior Judges on November 7th

I am a lifelong registered Democrat. I am also proud that I rarely vote for a straight-party ticket because I believe in voting for the best person regardless of party. When I was an elected Commissioner in Haverford, I ruffled feathers because I did not always vote the “party line” and continued, at times, to support candidates from both parties.

Yet now, the Delaware County Democratic Party has done something so extraordinary that I just don’t understand. They are asking voters to remove three judges from the bench in Delaware County – not because they are bad judges – but because they ran as Republicans 10 or 20 years ago. No one has criticized their performance as judges. Over 90 percent of all Delaware County lawyers polled have endorsed retaining these judges.

The Democrats claim that the reforms the courts need won’t happen without changing who serves as judges. OK. That sounds good. But the argument fails. Why? Because the anti-retention movement also demands the removal of Superior Court Judge Victor Stabile. Not only does the Superior Court have nothing to do with how Delaware County Courts operate, but Judge Stabile is from Cumberland County, about a 150-mile drive from here. I don’t think anyone from Cumberland County has ever influenced how Delaware County Courts operate, including Judge Stabile, who was elected to Superior Court a decade ago.

I have a simple philosophy when it comes to electing Judges. I want smart judges. I want fair judges. And I want judges focused on providing justice to my clients and everyone who appears before them.

I have appeared many times before Judge Stabile, and while I haven’t always agreed with his decisions, I respect him and his Opinions. Similarly, the Judges from Delaware County – Richard Cappelli, Barry Dozor, and William Mackrides – have all served with distinction and promoted comity. Judge Mackrides, for example, is Vice Chair of the Pennsylvania Bar Association Civility in the Profession Committee.

Even Delaware County District Attorney Jack Stollsteimer agrees that our party is wrong here and that these Judges deserve to be retained.

Let’s hope that the voters do the right thing and retain all of these judges.