In a three and a half minute video released to judges throughout California today, Chief Justice Cantil-Sukauye has said she’s gathered judicial branch leaders across the state to restore a 150 million dollars in cuts. She indicated she intended on meeting with the Governor and making her case.
Further on in the video, Cantil-Sukauye indicates she had asked presiding judges to ask their judges three questions and received over two hundred pages of replies from 38 courts. She does not appear to mention the comments supplied to her via the California Judges Association.
The questions asked were about governance, about what people perceive is wrong with the AOC and recommendations about what action she should take. Out of two hundred pages of comments she assures judges that she has read every one. Some recommendations she has already taken action on and some will take a bit longer.
The question of the day remains will she release these two hundred pages of comments to the media, the public or to this states’ judges?
An open letter from JCW to Tani Cantil-Sukauye,
There are two main issues that judicial branch leadership is hemorrhaging over.
1. Transparency. If there are two hundred pages of comments related to governance, what judges of the state perceive is wrong with the AOC and what recommendations are being made to her, she should release those comments to the media and this states judges.
Demonstrate transparency by walking the talk.
2. Accountability and Action. We’re going to put these together because she will either need to take an action to correct a perceived problem or hold people accountable.
There is nothing that currently resembles accountability in the Cantil-Sukayue administration and there was none whatsoever in the King George administration.
Demonstrate that you are serious about taking corrective action by a checklist. Let the judicial branch know what corrective course you are taking and why. Don’t be a Tony Hayward and say “you just want to get on with your life” and keep everyone in the dark.
The public thanks you in advance for your time and effort.
Truly Yours,
Judicial Council Watcher
(Note: If you are a recipient of this video link, kindly post it so others can view)
Judicial Council Watcher 
Wendy Darling
June 23, 2011
Perhaps the members of the State Legislature should request this information from the Chief Justice in advance of her “State of The Judiciary” speech to the members of the State Assembly and Senate on June 30.
Long live the ACJ.
tony maino
June 23, 2011
I wish the Chief Justice well in her meeting with the Governor and with her speech to the Legislature on June 30th. I believe that she is going to have difficulty in getting the 350 million in cuts restored to the judicial branch budget. I would think the Governor and the Legislature will ask her some of these questions: What are the reserves held by all of the courts in California? Why don’t you use/ transfer these reserves to keep the courts fully staffed and open? Why are you building courthouses at up to and over $1000.00 a square foot? Why are you building any courthouse if you do not have the money to staff it? Why are you spending excessive amounts on maintenance? Why did you authorize a pay raise for AOC employeees? Why are you allowing the staff of the AOC increase in numbers while telling us that these cuts will require courthouses to be closed? Are you willing to shut down CCMS to keep the courts open?
Judicial Council Watcher
June 23, 2011
If I were a legislator trying to balance a budget that appears to have a 10 billion dollar hole in it, got wind of all that was happening with the JC/AOC and I couldn’t raise taxes to balance the budget, the judicial branch’s pro-rata share of budget balancing cuts would consist of an additional 300 million or so ON TOP of the 350 million already cut.
If Brown is serious about a no gimmicks balanced budget then this money needs to come from somewhere. Our fearless leaders in the legislature might take this opportunity to sacrifice justice for the sake of decreasing prison populations.
It does not help that JC/AOC has been in a pissing match with the legislature, that the state legislature wants her “valued asset” to be fired for his gross mismanagement and she lets him retire gracefully or that they keep pushing forward on CCMS deployment plans with a defective application.
If you’ve been to a baseball game you probably remember the giant foam hands with fingers from baseball games that typically have an index finger in the air and says “We’re number one!”
Her foamy finger happens to be the middle finger and the message has been crystal clear since she took office.
Wendy Darling
June 23, 2011
Published late today, Thursday, June 23, on The Recorder, the on-line publication of CalLaw:
AG Asked to Review Extra Pay and Perks for Trial Court Judges
Cheryl Miller
http://www.law.com/jsp/ca/PubArticleCA.jsp?id=1202498373415&slreturn=1&hbxlogin=1
Long live the ACJ.
courtflea
June 24, 2011
Tony, I think many courts will be using their reserves (if they have any) to keep their doors open and to avoid layoffs . Transferring reserves from one court to another? With predictions being that cuts will be worse for next fiscal year? I think the court needing the reserves from another would have to have a pretty strong justification for why they would need them, to reallocate them. The first question being why is the court not maintaining some type of mininimal reserves for potenial liabilities? Why are they overspending? I think the answer more correctly lies in taking the $$ from the AOC not your local trial courts that are practicing good business management. CCMS funding alone (and your other suggestions) could see the courts through this budget crisis.