Judge Remains Silent on Corruption Questions

You probably will not be surprised to learn that William C. Thompson, presiding judge of the Alabama Court of Civil Appeals, has not responded to my e-mail asking him to explain unlawful findings he made on my appeal.

You also will not be surprised to learn that Thompson won his third six-year term on the all-Republican court last week, even though he is demonstrably corrupt.

The good news is that Democratic challenger Kimberly Drake made a pretty strong showing, considering that she had limited financial resources. Drake's showing makes me think Thompson and his GOP cronies on the appeals court are beatable if Democrats can mount a strong fund-raising effort.

But back to my e-mail. Why would Thompson not respond? Well, interested readers might want to ask him. His e-mail address is wthompson@appellate.state.al.us.

Here's a sample of what you could write. (Feel free to cut and paste this. Just trying to be helpful.):

Judge Thompson:
I am a citizen concerned about justice issues and would like to ask you about your handling of the Legal Schnauzer case--Roger Shuler v. Mike McGarity (Appeal from Shelby County Circuit Court, 00-1248), appellate docket number 2040161.

Your no-opinion affirmance in the case raises two simple questions:

* How do you affirm a trial court's decision to allow an amendment to complaint that was filed 65 days late, without seeking leave of court as required by law?

* How do you affirm a trial court's decisions to deny three properly executed and supported motions for summary judgment (MSJ) where the nonmoving party did not respond as required by law--and in the final two instances, the nonmoving party did respond at all?

As a taxpayer, I would like for you to explain these decisions. I'm sure you would agree it's important that citizens have confidence that courts are making lawful rulings.

I await your reply.

Sincerely,

Your Name

We'll see if you have more luck than I did in getting a response.

Meanwhile, my posts about Judge Thompson drew an anonymous comment from a reader who appears to be a member of the legal community. The comment reveals an awful lot about the sorry state of our judicial system, particularly the appellate courts.

I would like to share the comment with you and take a close look at its contents. That will be coming up soon.

(To be continued)