Twenty three years ago, then Governor George Deukmejian tapped Judge Horan to sit on the Glendale Municipal Court. Two years later he was elevated to a Superior Court position where he has honorably served the Los Angeles County Courts.
JCW knows Judge Horan best as an advocate for court workers, the people of the state of California, of democracy and of the rule of law and being a member of JCW’s Hall of Fame.
A vocal ACJ director of the fastest growing judges association that writes killer op-ed pieces about an out of control AOC, many of us will miss him being the catalyst for change who wears the robe. According to his communications here and elsewhere Judge Horan is going to continue to fill that role and we could not be more delighted to hear that, sans the robe.
Here is to a comfortable, relaxing retirement that offers you the occasional opportunity for challenges that will keep you razor sharp. I think the ACJ will offer you plenty in that arena. Though we are sad to see you leave the bench, we’re ecstatic that you’re not leaving the fight.
Judge Charles “Chuck” Horan – from all of us affiliated with JCW – thank you for your service.
Judicial Council Watcher 
Mrs. Kramer
May 6, 2011
Yes. Thank you. Most average citizens do not realize what you have done that will improve countless lives by aiding to keep democracy in our courts. But I do and I am very appreciative.
wendy darling
May 6, 2011
Ossie Davis, the late, great American actor, once observed. “We can’t float through life – we must fix our gaze on a guiding star, and keep our hands on the plough. It is the consistency of the pursuit that gives one the constancy and purpose, that gives one the encouragement, that gives one the way to understand, why it is important to do what you can do.”
Take a moment, Judge Horan, to turn now and look behind you at the long, and honorable, furrow you have ploughed over the past 23 years of your professional life. See there the hundreds, if not thousands, of people lined beside it, shoulder to shoulder, bearing silent witness to the integrity, ethics, grace, dignity, and honor you brought to your profession, your robe, and your public office. Many who visit here stand there among them, head bowed in respect and gratitude, thankful for the star you fixed your gaze upon and chose to follow in your professional career, thankful even more for the lasting benefit so many enjoyed, and will continue to enjoy, as a consequence.
Look forward, and see before you, the Daughters and Sons of Themis. We await your continued wisdom, guidance, experience, and leadership. It is needed here, to help all of us find the way back to a judicial branch with integrity, and in which the public can have confidence.
And long live the ACJ.
JusticeCalifornia
May 6, 2011
Hey Judge Horan, you play the guitar, this is a pretty good song by Bob Dylan.
Maggie’s Farm
I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
No, I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
Well, I wake in the morning
Fold my hands and pray for rain
I got a head full of ideas
That are drivin’ me insane
It’s a shame the way she makes me scrub the floor
I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s brother no more
No, I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s brother no more
Well, he hands you a nickel
He hands you a dime
He asks you with a grin
If you’re havin’ a good time
Then he fines you every time you slam the door
I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s brother no more
I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s pa no more
No, I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s pa no more
Well, he puts his cigar
Out in your face just for kicks
His bedroom window
It is made out of bricks
The National Guard stands around his door
Ah, I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s pa no more
I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s ma no more
No, I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s ma no more
Well, she talks to all the servants
About man and God and law
Everybody says
She’s the brains behind pa
She’s sixty-eight, but she says she’s twenty-four
I ain’t gonna work for Maggie’s ma no more
I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
No, I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
Well, I try my best
To be just like I am
But everybody wants you
To be just like them
They sing while you slave and I just get bored
I ain’t gonna work on Maggie’s farm no more
Copyright © 1965 by Warner Bros. Inc.; renewed 1993 by Special Rider Music
versal-versal
May 7, 2011
What an awesome career . Judge Horan did it all. What I most admire about Judge Horan is his courage. He had the courage of his convictions. He spoke out long before it was fashionable about the growing centralized effforts of the Judicial Council and the State AOC to take control of the trial courts. Judge Horan’s efforts to be true to to the California Constitution and to the principles of democracy and local control of the trial courts will always be his greatest legacy. His efforts led to the creation of the ACJ and the respect of the vast majority of California Judges. Thanks Judge Horan for all you have done to help our branch end the culture of undemocratic rule that former CJ George created. Good luck always. This is my last post here for personal reasons. As I also plan to retire soon and leave California I want to thank all of you that post here and care for our branch and most importantly for the people of California. Good luck all , V-V.
JusticeCalifornia
May 9, 2011
So much yet to do. . . .(2:38-3:05)
Rifleman
May 9, 2011
Call it the War of the Robes.
Sweeping budget cuts in trial courts across California, coupled with mounting frustration with the state’s much-maligned court bureaucracy, have exposed an unprecedented public rift in the normally tranquil fraternity of more than 2,000 judges. The division has handed new Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakauye a rebellion to quell in her first months in office, as well as legislative proposals now gaining momentum that are pitting trial courts against each other up and down California.
“It has made judges choose sides,” an exasperated Cantil-Sakauye said in an interview this week. “I’d rather see our energies aimed at fixing our own problems.”
As the judicial tension escalates, one casualty may be a statewide technology upgrade for the courts that has ballooned in cost to nearly $2 billion, prompting an outcry from many judges who consider it an ill-conceived boondoggle that should be scrapped to help pay for basic court needs. The fallout also has fueled a move to reduce the powers of the state’s judicial leadership to control the purse strings of local county courts.
The strife in the state’s judicial branch has been building for several years, particularly since the state Judicial Council, which sets policy for all California courts, two summers ago ordered all courts to close one day per month to save money — an unprecedented move that infuriated many judges who argued that such a decision should be left to the local level. Cantil-Sakauye has vowed to avoid that step in the current round of budget slashing, but the issue has lingered.
The court closures spawned the Alliance of California Judges, a rebel group separate from the state’s established California Judges Association. And the new group targeted two issues: the state Administrative Office of the Courts, which is the San Francisco-based court bureaucracy and the technology upgrade, which has been pushed by the AOC.
As this newspaper reported two years ago, the AOC, as the bureaucracy is known, has doubled its budget and workforce at a time when the rest of the court system has had to cut back, including a projected $200 million hit to court coffers this year. The AOC has become a favorite target because it is an emblem of reforms enacted more than a decade ago designed to centralize court oversight and finances in the state’s 58 local courts, moving from county-funded trial courts to state funding.
All these factors have combined to cause the judicial unrest.
“I do think that there is very substantial resentment at virtually all levels of the courts,” said Conrad Rushing, presiding justice of the San Jose-based 6th District Court of Appeal and not a member of the alliance.
In a survey last month, the California Judges Association revealed the extent of the discontent. A majority of the 877 judges who responded expressed dissatisfaction with Judicial Council oversight of the AOC and court affairs, as well as plans to push forward with the technology overhaul despite a state audit that found major problems with its “scope and direction.”
Cantil-Sakauye, while taking those results “seriously,” noted that many judges did not participate in the survey, suggesting the concerns may be overstated. But that has not held off legislation, backed by Assembly Majority Leader Charles Calderon, D-Montebello, that would remove some of the central powers of the council and AOC to govern local trial courts.
A watered-down version of Calderon’s bill, which has heavy backing from the alliance and Los Angeles Superior Court’s judges, was approved last week by the assembly’s judiciary committee. Among other things, the legislation could make it tough for the council to proceed with the upgrade, designed to link all of the state’s court information systems.
“What is driving this legislation and driving trial courts to speak up in majority numbers is they are tired of the AOC taking money that would otherwise go to them,” Calderon said in an interview after the committee vote.
Cantil-Sakauye calls the bill “disrespectful to the branch” and “destabilizing.” Trial judges have lined up for and against the legislation, which has taken on almost symbolic importance — most judges agree it would not dramatically alter the status quo.
Santa Clara County’s judges, for example, are among the strongest opponents of Calderon’s bill, and are generally supportive of both the AOC and the tech upgrade. But neighboring San Mateo County’s judges sent a letter endorsing the legislation.
Beth Freeman, San Mateo County’s presiding judge, said her court’s vote is a message for more local autonomy, “a more direct say in how our courts are managed.”
Brian Walsh, Santa Clara’s assistant presiding judge, counters that the legislative effort undercuts years of reform aimed at eliminating what was once considered the chaos of 58 different courts doing things 58 different ways. “To me,” he said, “this is going backward.”
The alliance of judges, however, is growing in numbers and arguing to limit the powers of the Judicial Council, which is often heavily influenced by the chief justice; previously that was Ronald George, who became one of the state’s most powerful figures in that role, and now it is Cantil-Sakauye. With a summer of budget cuts on the table, some judges want to see change.
“(The legislation) is an important first step in the process to democratize the judicial branch,” said Sacramento Superior Court Judge Marianne Gilliard, an alliance leader.
All this back-and-forth among judges who spend their days resolving conflict has Cantil-Sakauye, now in her fifth month as chief, wondering where her honeymoon went. She has urged judges to give her time to study the issues, saying, “I need to know what’s in the cupboard.”
But she acknowledges the challenges are inevitable in the current climate.
“With an institution of 2,000 judges and 17,000 court employees, there is always a level of discontent,” Cantil-Sakauye said.
Contact Howard Mintz at 408-286-0236
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Come on folks, CJ Cantil-Sakauye’s husband doesn’t know where to buy creme rinse for his daughter’s? Do you want this representing California? 408 cal @ 2900 yards
007
May 10, 2011
WOW! I’m all for political debate and whatnot but posting a thinly veiled assassination threat against the Chief Justice goes way over the line.
Judicial Council Watcher
May 10, 2011
I didn’t read it as any assassination threat. More like “sniper fire” commentary. But you would need some military background to appreciate it. For those unfamiliar with the concept, a subject (such as where Tani’s husband knows where to go to buy their daughters creme rinse) is not at all germaine to the discussion at hand but is an acknowledged shot at someone. 408@2900 yds is a really long shot for those not marksmen.
Michael Paul
May 10, 2011
….and one he likely knew would miss its mark because the .408 cheyenne tactical round is an intermediate round that remains supersonic (and accurate) for only about 2000 yards, 900 yards short of his target. I agree with the sniping comment and not the veiled threat.
JusticeCalifornia
May 10, 2011
This is a very amusing blog. You learn something new every day. 🙂
Judicial Council Watcher
May 10, 2011
Other fast facts:
The world record for hitting a target remains 2707 yards / 1.54 miles.
2900 yards is 1.64 miles, underscoring the posters intent of missing the target, though otherwise making a salient point.
Who buys the creme rinse? 🙂 (it’s a pun on the real salient point..)
wendy darling
May 10, 2011
Posted late this afternoon, Tuesday, May 10, 2011, from Courthouse News Service, by Maria Dinzeo:
Northern Courts Reject Massive IT Project in Answers From CA Survey
By MARIA DINZEO. http://www.courthousenews.com
Long live the ACJ.
Rifleman
May 10, 2011
Sorry, you are reading way more into that than was intended. As JCW noted, simply a pun. Nothing intended other than one’s ability to focus, training and lots of hard work over 30 years. Sorry Michael and JCW, but targeted with .408 cal CheyTac M-200 with computer adjustment at just over 3014 yards; 4 shots with of 21″ spread (hardened and mil-spec R-PDAs running the Windows Mobile 2003 operating system, using input from the Kestrel handheld weather station and Vector IV laser rangefinder binoculars!) Oh well, back to the mountains.
JusticeCalifornia
May 11, 2011
Judge Woodhull, Lando, although you said you weren’t going to post anymore, you gotta be loving that CJA letter, and thinking to yourselves: all that amazing effort has paid off big time, after all.
Top leadership has officially scored an “F” in every catergory by two judicial organizations, and now change is inevitable.
Would love to hear what you think. . .
JusticeCalifornia
May 11, 2011
you too, versal-versal
Judicial Council Watcher
May 11, 2011
The CJA letter was impressive. Someone grew some cajones and walked thru the door frankly and we’re happy to see it. It wouldn’t have been possible without the likes of some of our posters here at JCW who did an excellent job of getting the word out. We at JCW just post material. Most of that material we post comes from readers (and posters) just like you.
Mrs. Kramer
May 11, 2011
JCW,
Are you saying Action Item 5 of 3752 to aid the new Chief Justice to restore democracy to our courts should be:
“With Justice at Stake, it is not wise to retaliate against Whistleblowers.” ?
(CCP 425.19 needs to be eliminated from underground government code).
Michael Paul
May 11, 2011
“Sometimes, the most important communications is to hear what isn’t being said” 🙂
Mrs. Kramer
May 11, 2011
Great saying! Would be good in a fortune cookie. My father had five daughters. He lived by the motto, “If you don’t want to know, don’t ask.” That’s okay if you are a parent trying to survive teenage daughters. But that is not okay if you are overseeing the largest judicial branch in the US with billions of public monies.
Action Item #6 of 3752:
“Even if you don’t want to hear the answer, as the CA CJ charged with keeping democracy in our courts, it would be wise to ask…and then listen to what is being said and not being said.”