Gavel Grab

A Texas representative has introduced a resolution to impeach a high-court judge who refused to keep her office open after hours to allow a last-minute death penalty appeal.

Rep. Lon Burnam presented HR 480, a resolution to consider the impeachment of Sharon Keller,  Presiding Judge of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals, according to an article by The Morning Call. The full text of the resolution, which alleges “gross neglect of duty and conducting her official duties with willful disregard for human life,”  can be found here.

On Sept. 25, 2007, Keller closed her office at 5 p.m. even though attorneys for Michael Richard were struggling through computer problems to file a late appeal of Richard’s death sentence. Richard was executed later that night.

Burnam considered Keller’s actions to be an “apparent irresponsible refusal to abide by the prior practice of the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals” and filed a resolution that, if passed, would initiate an investigation of Keller’s actions and subsequent recommendation of impeachment to the Senate.

Although a strict adherence to the rules is usually admirable, Burnam notes, “‘It’s one thing for a banker to close shop at five o’clock sharp. But a public official who stands between a human being and the death chamber must be held to a higher standard.’”

An Off the Kuff blog posted by Charles Kuffner argues that the resolution is unlikely to pass in the Republican-controlled legislature. The last time Texas impeached a judge was in the 1970s, after a series of scandals eventually led to ethics reforms.