The American College of Trial Lawyers has repeatedly called for elected political officials not to demonize the judges of our nation who are called upon to interpret our laws and constitution.

Recently a federal judge in the Southern District of California decided that an assault rifle ban enacted by the California legislature more than 30 years ago was not consistent with the Second Amendment to the United States Constitution as more recently interpreted by the Supreme Court. The State of California, through its Attorney General, disagreed with the judge’s decision and announced that the State will appeal – as is clearly its right. But during the press conference announcing the appeal Governor Gavin Newsom denigrated the Judge who decided the case on a personal level, referring to him as a “stone cold ideologue” and a “wholly owned subsidiary of the gun lobby and the National Rifle Association.” Personal attacks leveled against a member of the judiciary, regardless of one’s views on the merits of a decision, are inconsistent with the principles of judicial independence that are central to the mission of the American College of Trial Lawyers.