My Blog

Electing Justice

05/21/2012 15:01:00

Dear Member of the Missouri Bar,

We need your help to keep politics and money out of the Non-Partisan Court Plan. An unprecedented threat to the way we select appellate judges in Missouri, one that is funded by hundreds of thousands of dollars of out-of-state money, is moving through the legislature and headed for the ballot this November. We need your help to prevent that from happening.

As early as today, the Missouri Senate is expected to debate a measure that, if adopted by a vote of the people, would drastically change the Non-Partisan Court Plan as we know it. The measure is Senate Committee Substitute for Senate Joint Resolution 51.

The Missouri Bar is committed to keeping big money partisan politics out of Missouri’s judicial branch of government. That is why the Board of Governors in a special meeting last week adopted a motion continuing their endorsement of the Non-Partisan Court Plan and opposing SCS SJR51.

SCS SJR51 would grant all future governors full control over the commission that selects the candidates for appellate judge who are submitted to the governor. This would have the effect of eliminating Missouri’s merit-based judicial selection process. SCS SJR51 would take Missouri’s plan that chooses judges in the least political way and shift the majority of the commission to political appointees who are appointed by one person - a governor.

The proposal’s changes include:

Handing all future governors control of four out of seven commissioners in a single term. Within just two years of a governor's first term, his or her political appointees will be at the helm of the commission responsible for selecting the candidates that governor will consider for judicial vacancies.
Removing a Supreme Court Judge from serving on the appellate judicial commission. While a retired judge could serve, the judge would no longer have a vote. Silencing a judge’s voice removes the person with the most experience and ability to evaluate a candidate’s skills, knowledge and suitability for the bench.
Diluting the quality of the selection process by allowing the commission to select four, rather than three, candidates to submit to the governor.

These changes would make our Non-Partisan Court Plan a Partisan Court Plan that is ultimately controlled by one person which significantly increases the opportunity and likelihood that

justice

in Missouri can be bought.

That is why we encourage you to contact your state senators and representatives to voice your concerns. It is important for Missouri’s

elected

officials to hear from you about how our merit-based judicial selection process works for Missourians by providing fair and impartial judges in the least political way ultimately giving the people the final say.

The Missouri Non-Partisan Court Plan is used to select our appellate judges and circuit court trial judges in the City of St. Louis and the Counties of Clay, Greene, Jackson, Platte and St. Louis. To learn more about the plan, visit

www.mobar.org/nonpartisancourtplan

Help us put a stop to this manufactured crisis by a select few with deep pockets. Contact your state senator and representative today by clicking the following link

http://www.mobar.org/members/capwiz.aspx

and using the provided form to protect Missouri’s Non-Partisan Court Plan.

Vote Emily A. Prestidge for 30th Circuit Judge

02/06/2012 15:00:00

Under any system of judicial selection, it takes some effort to get to know a judicial candidate. This is true whether the judge is running for election or standing for retention by the voters. In the retention election, The Missouri Bar for years has attempted to fill this information gap by surveying lawyers who appear before the judges who are on the ballot. The judges are rated on a number of factors – including knowledge of the law, courtesy and judicial temperament – and the results of the survey are publicized widely.

Judicial Standards

02/01/2012 19:51:00

“The legal profession, the legal academy, the press, voluntary

groups, political and civic leaders, and all interested

citizens can use their own First Amendment freedoms

to protest statements inconsistent with standards

of judicial neutrality and judicial excellence. Indeed, if

democracy is to fulfill its promise, they must do so.” Justice

Anthony Kennedy, concurring opinion, Republican

Party of Minnesota v. White, 536 U.S. 765 (2002)

Campaign Theme

01/28/2012 14:02:00

Vote Prestidge for 30th Circuit Judge

"Won't Back Down"

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Vote Prestidge for 30th Circuit Judge

"Won't Back Down"

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Marshfield Mail Article 1-25-12

01/27/2012 17:25:00

Webster County Attorney Emily A. Prestidge has announced that she is seeking the office of Circuit Judge for the 30th Judicial Circuit. The 30th Judicial Circuit is comprised of the counties of Benton, Dallas, Hickory, Polk and Webster. The judgeship is currently held by Judge John W. “Bill” Sims who has announced his plans to retire at the end of his term in 2012.

Prestidge has served as an Assistant Greene County Prosecuting Attorney in Springfield, Missouri before opening her private practice in Marshfield, Missouri, where she focuses on Family, Criminal, Real Estate and Business Law. Prestidge is currently serving as Special Prosecutor for the City of Hartville, Wright County, Missouri, as Special City Attorney for the City of Ava, Douglas County, Missouri and Special Prosecuting Attorney for Douglas County, MO. Prestidge also serves as a Missouri State Special Public Defender, representing the indigent and as a Pro Bono attorney for Legal Services of Southern Missouri providing free legal services to low income, elderly and battered women. Prestidge has been Court appointed by multiple courts to act as a Guardian ad Litem for children and elderly clients in need of legal representation.

Prestidge is a graduate of Marshfield High School. Prestidge attended college at Evangel University where she earned a degree in Psychology, Government and Biblical Studies. She received a Juris Doctorate from University of Missouri – Columbia School of Law and while a student, was given the distinct honor of having her work published, "Severance Pay - - His or Hers? How Courts Approach the Classification of Severance Pay at Dissolution: Past Efforts vs. Future Compensation." University of Texas Journal of Women and the Law, Volume 13, Issue 2 (2004).

Prestidge is the daughter of retired Captain Larry E. Silkey of Ozark Correctional Center in Fordland, Missouri and Cynthia Silkey, residents of Marshfield, Missouri. She has two children, Viggo, 5 and Gisele, who is 4 years old.

When asked about why Prestidge is seeking office, she states, “I feel that my background in private practice and as a prosecutor has given me the experience necessary to assume the office of circuit judge. I believe it is most important for a judge to be fair and impartial and I will work to maintain those standards above all other considerations without regard to any political or social standing. I believe the easy decision is not usually the right decision and it is my desire to serve the citizens of the 30th Judicial Circuit in a fair, impartial and efficient manner.” Prestidge firmly believes that “the position of Judge is a position of principles, integrity and a common sense approach to everyday problems confronted by our citizens.”

Attorney Prestidge looks forward to meeting the people in the 30th Judicial Circuit in her upcoming campaign.

Marshfield attorney Prestidge a candidate for circuit judge

01/27/2012 16:41:00

Missouri 'Facebook' Law: Judge Grants Injunction Against Limits on Online Contact Between Teachers and Students

08/29/2011 10:46:00

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Missouri teacher sues state over ‘Facebook law,’ says she can’t contact her own child online

08/29/2011 10:45:00

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