Monday, March 20, 2006

Official Statement by Chief Justice Russell Anderson

Posted by Craig Westover | 2:27 PM |  

Statement of Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Russell A. Anderson


SAINT PAUL, Minn. (March 20, 2006) – Today Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Russell A. Anderson issued the following statement:

“On Friday, Senator Dean Johnson apologized to Minnesotans for suggesting that a justice or justices had provided private assurances of the Court’s intent regarding a 1997 law.

On behalf of the Minnesota Supreme Court, I formally accept Senator Johnson’s apology and thank him for publicly verifying what the Court has said since the outset: that no member of this court or my predecessor, Kathleen Blatz, ever made a commitment to Senator Johnson about this matter or any other likely to come before us.

Contrary to Senator Johnson’s original assertion, and any speculation by commentators since then, there have been no discussions by former Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz or any current member of the Supreme Court with Senator Johnson about the Defense of Marriage Act, let alone any assurances given in regard to that law. It never happened.

In the wake of these attacks on the integrity of court members and this institution, Senator Johnson’s apology should help reassure citizens of this state that their judiciary is an impartial institution made up of men and women who faithfully perform their duties in a fair and nonpartisan manner.

This incident has served as a timely example of the dangers posed by a politicized judiciary. It is a glimpse into how the public’s trust in their courts would be eroded if judges actually did pre-judge cases without the benefit of a hearing, or publicly or privately pledged to rule one way or another. It is my fervent hope that the discussion that has taken place over the last week has helped underscore for all Minnesotans the importance of maintaining a fair and impartial judiciary.”

Russell A. Anderson
Chief Justice, Minnesota Supreme Court
The money paragraph in Chief Justice Anderson's statment is this:
Contrary to Senator Johnson’s original assertion, and any speculation by commentators since then, there have been no discussions by former Chief Justice Kathleen Blatz or any current member of the Supreme Court with Senator Johnson about the Defense of Marriage Act, let alone any assurances given in regard to that law. It never happened.
Johnson has made the assertion that at least one conversation took place not just in his original statement, but in all his modifications of his statement from "casual conversation" through "embellishment" to "sanding the truth." It is not media speculation that is feeding this controversy, but Johnson's continual insistence, however, modified, that at least one conversation did take place.

As correct as Justice Anderson is about the dangers posed by a politicized judiciary, the situation will remained charged until Sen. Johnson either agrees with the Court that “no conversation took place,” or he names justices he spoke with and gets specific about the conversation.

There have been no attacks on the integrity of court members -- just questions raised by Sen. Johnson’s continued prevarication. Those questions remain as long as Sen. Johnson insists on slouching towards the truth.