Governor could replace local bar associations in selecting Marion County judges

A bill giving the governor more authority in choosing Marion County judges is moving through the legislature, despite objections from Democrats.

The bill removes representatives from local bar associations and legal groups from the selection process — a change that opponents worry will politicize the judiciary.

Marion County is one of just a handful of counties that do not elect their own judges. Instead, judges are approved by a selection committee, which then sends recommendations to the governor for final appointment. Residents vote on whether to retain judges after they’ve served their first term.

Currently, the 14-member Marion County Judicial Selection Committee includes representatives from both political parties, the chief justice of the Indiana Court of Appeals, and a justice from the Indiana Supreme Court. It also mandates seats for members of local legal groups, including the Marion County Bar Association, Indiana Trial Lawyers Association, and the Defense Trial Counsel of Indiana.

House Bill 1033 would eliminate those specific seats. In their place, the legislation would give the governor the power to make two appointments and the chief justice of the Indiana Supreme Court the ability to appoint two more.

The bill passed back to the House with amendments Tuesday, where it will need a final approval before heading to the governor.

Sen. Fady Qaddoura (D-Indianapolis) said the county deserves to have a diverse selection committee.

“And when the underlying bill removes representation on a nomination committee from the only Black bar association in the county, that is not representation; this is taking representation away,” he said.

The bill’s sponsor, Sen. Cyndo Carrasco (R-Indianapolis), told lawmakers the changes are about creating more accountability.

“What’s important to me is making sure we have the best, the brightest, and most talented minds of judges in Marion County to make decisions that are having tremendous impact on our community,” she said.

Carrasco also noted the committee’s role is growing. Under current law, the committee can only make recommendations to voters about whether a judge is fit to be retained. Under the bill, the committee could decide to remove a judge from eligibility for the ballot entirely.

Because of that power, Carrasco said she felt the makeup of the committee needed to change.

“Those very, very important determinations about the suitability of a judge’s ability to continue on the bench merited, in my humble opinion, that level of accountability,” she said.

Local confusion

The change to the makeup of the committee came to some members as a total surprise.

Katie Jackson-Lindsay serves on the current committee, appointed by the Marion County Bar Association. She is also the current president of the Indianapolis Bar Association. She said the news that both groups would be cut from the judicial selection committee came “out of left field.”

“I have no idea. I'm serious. I have no idea,” Jackson-Lindsay said. “To suggest that somehow we're not educated enough or accountable enough in our current makeup—I cannot understand where that's coming from at all, and no one has tried to offer us an explanation for that.”

Jackson-Lindsay worried that the move continues to erode the voice of Marion County voters.

“The governor has the ultimate say on who is selected from three names that are sent,” she said. “So now, what we're essentially doing is giving the governor power on the committee to even choose what those three names will be. I think that's really dangerous.”

Contact Government Reporter Benjamin Thorp at bthorp@wfyi.org