California Judges Association’s Judicial Fairness Coalition Hosts Series of Virtual Public Town Halls

SACRAMENTO--(BUSINESS WIRE)--The California Judges Association (CJA)’s Judicial Fairness Coalition (JFC) has planned a series of regional virtual town hall meetings throughout the state titled “Judges & Politics: Navigating the Intersection of Law, Power and Ethics.” All of the town halls are free of charge and open to the public, and the first two programs in the series will take place February 25 and March 19 at 4:30 p.m. PT. There will be four town halls in total, presented in collaboration with the California Lawyers Association and the California Lawyers Foundation.

Delineated by region, each town hall will feature local judges and moderators, and participants will have an opportunity to submit questions in advance. The Southern California Coastal Town Hall will be held on February 25 and panelists include Judge Lee Gabriel, Orange County Superior Court, Judge Robert Trentacosta, San Diego Superior Court, and Judge Laura Walton, Los Angeles Superior Court. The discussion will be moderated by Jerrilyn Malana, Chief Deputy District Attorney, San Diego County District Attorney’s Office.

The Southern California Inland Town Hall will take place on March 19, and panelists include Judge Sean Lafferty, Riverside Superior Court, Judge Marco Nunez, Imperial County Superior Court, and Judge John Pacheco (Ret.), previously with the San Bernardino Superior Court. Greg Rizio, the Immediate Past President of CAL-ABOTA, will moderate the Southern California Inland Town Hall.

“JFC’s series of town halls aims to break down the barriers between the judiciary and the public, and to foster a better understanding of how our legal system works,” said Judge Khymberli Apaloo, CJA President. “Civic engagement is more critical than ever before, and it is important that we create greater transparency and make more information about the third branch available to the public.”

Two additional town halls are being planned for Sacramento and the surrounding area, and San Francisco and the surrounding area, and will be announced by JFC later in the year. Anyone can attend any of the virtual town halls, regardless of the region. Individuals interested in attending the Southern California Coastal Town Hall can register here: https://bit.ly/JFCSCTownHall. To register for the Southern California Inland Town Hall, click here: https://bit.ly/JFCSITownHall.

Founded in 2018, the JFC was created to respond to unfair criticism and false and misleading information about judges and the judiciary and affirm the independence of the courts. The JFC is a statewide coalition of active and retired judges, bar association members, and law school deans and professors. In 2022, the JFC launched a public education and engagement campaign, aimed to demystify the third branch of government, abate unfair criticism of judges, and reinforce the importance of an impartial judiciary. Learn more at www.caljudges.org/judicialfairness.