Too cool! --> Colleagues Help S.D. Judge Stay on Bench

[Breeze54]

Colleagues Help S.D. Judge Stay on Bench

http://www.cfnews13.com/News/National/2007/3/29/colleagues_help_s.d._judge_stay_on_bench.html

Thursday, March 29, 2007 11:12:54 AM

SIOUX FALLS, S.D.(AP)

Supreme Court watchers often speculate about aging justices holding off retirement until
the election of a president who will pick an ideologically similar replacement.

Some conservatives are now questioning whether a federal district judge in South Dakota is
doing the same thing and getting help from two colleagues who have taken on some of his cases.

U.S. District Judge Charles Kornmann, 69, put off his retirement after two fellow Democratic
judges agreed to share his workload, a move that could allow someone from their party to get
Kornmann's job if a Democrat is elected president in 2008.

Kornmann and one of the other judges acknowledged the arrangement in interviews with The
Associated Press. Joseph Haas, the federal clerk of court for South Dakota, also confirmed that
some of Kornmann's caseload was reallocated last fall.

Kornmann, who handles cases in Aberdeen and Pierre for the northern and central sections
of the state, said he could have reduced his caseload and become a senior judge last fall.
But he stayed on full-time after U.S. District Judges Karen Schreier in Rapid City and
Lawrence Piersol in Sioux Falls took on about two-thirds of the criminal cases in Pierre.

Democratic President Bill Clinton appointed all three in the 1990s.

"The other judges don't want me to retire," Kornmann said. "I don't plan to do anything for a time.
I could have taken senior status in September but in view of them helping out that much, I decided
not to do it." When asked why they helped, Kornmann joked: "They think I'm such a wonderful judge.
It has nothing to do with who the president is." He added: "It might have something to do with it."

If Kornmann retired now, U.S. Sen. John Thune would recommend a replacement to President Bush,
who would send the nominee to the Senate for confirmation. Since Thune and Bush are both
Republicans, the candidate likely would be as well.

Kornmann, Schreier and Piersol drew criticism last year for opposing the Bush administration's pick
for interim U.S. attorney in South Dakota. Kornmann, Piersol and Schreier have deep Democratic roots
in a heavily Republican state.

Schreier is a former chairwoman of the South Dakota Democratic Party and Kornmann is a former state
party executive director. Piersol served as majority leader of the South Dakota House as a Democrat
in 1973-1974.

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:thumbsup: :thumbsup:

[MasonJar]

1. Thank you for hanging in there until 08. You will be bored to death

at home anyway.