Crist Crucible: Gov. Charlie Crist wanted his actions to match his words about wanting a more diverse judiciary. Specifically, Crist wanted to reject the all-white list of nominees for appointment to the 5th District (Daytona Beach) Court of Appeal. But he was thwarted by the Florida Supreme Court, which ruled that – worthy rationale notwithstanding – he had to fill the vacancy from among the six candidates duly submitted by the Judicial Nominating Commission. Sorry, Charlie.
Writing for the court was Justice Jorge Labarga, a Crist appointee and the court’s lone Hispanic member. Labarga wrote that the governor does not have the discretion to refuse to act on the commission’s submissions even though “we applaud the governor’s interest in achieving diversity in the judiciary…” Indeed they do, especially Justice Labarga.
Recall that the Cuban native’s own appointment last year — a politically controversial one — served to underscore the governor’s high-profile commitment to diversity. Now it’s Justice Labarga, whose ethnic heritage was so instrumental to his Supreme Court seat, who had to make it clear that wanting diversity wasn’t reason sufficient to override the Constitution and ignore the nominating commission. Talk about irony.
Crist has 60 days to make his choice among the six white nominees.