Endorsement watch: 14th Court of Appeals

More judicial races. We have a long way to go with these.

Justice, 14th Court of Appeals District, Place 3: Jerry Zimmerer

This primary race presents voters with a choice between two candidates who each offer different strengths.

Jerry Zimmerer, who earned two Master of Law degrees from University of Houston Law Center in addition to his law degree from South Texas College of Law, considers this judicial bench an academic job. He has spent close to 25 years in private practice, and yet the candidate had trouble touting any cases where he fought for justice or had a lasting impact on jurisprudence in Texas.

His opponent, Joseph R. Willie II, is a retired dentist and Navy veteran in addition to being a lawyer, and he pointed to several significant appellate cases where he successfully advocated for the innocent and underdogs. However, Willie’s law license twice suffered a fully probated suspension imposed by the State Bar of Texas for running afoul of professional codes. At the end of the day, it’s hard to endorse someone with blots on his record even if he evinces the passion for the law that Willie demonstrates.

Our nod goes to Zimmerer, 63, who switched parties decades ago, noting that the Republican Party “has left me as it has left a lot of people.”

[…]

Justice, 14th Court of Appeals District, Place 8: Michele Barber Chimene

Michele Barber Chimene, our choice for Democratic nominee, has 25 years of experience practicing appellate law and has handled more than 50 civil appeals. It’s preferable that candidates have appellate experience for this bench, as the rules governing appeals are different than the rules of civil procedure that govern trials.

Chimene, 60, is a University of Houston Law Center graduate and started her career as a geologist. She is admitted to practice before the U.S. Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals and the U.S. Supreme Court, and told the Houston Chronicle editorial board that she firmly believes the Legislature should make the law, and the judiciary should just apply it.

Chimene’s Q&A is here, and a Q&A for her opponent Meg Poissant is here. They’ve split a couple of group endorsements, while Zimmerer has received all of the ones that have been given out in his race. His opponent doesn’t appear to have any web presence, which would have been a problem for me in any event. There was also a Republican race endorsement at this link, if you’re into that sort of thing.

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