KING: Black Kentucky judge’s career has been assaulted since he spoke out against racism
Judge Olu Stevens Finds His Career Threatened
Jefferson Circuit Judge Olu Stevens has found his career threatened since he spoke out against racism in jury selection.
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In the mostly white, mostly male fraternal legal communities throughout Kentucky, Judge Olu Stevens, one of only three black Circuit Court judges in the state, was once glowingly spoken of as a potential state or federal Supreme Court nominee.
That was, until he dared to speak out, in his ever-so-calm and measured manner, against racism from his judicial bench.
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When he broke that unwritten rule of keeping quiet about issues of race, the bottom fell out, all hell broke loose, enemies appeared out of the woodwork, death threats poured in, and, for the first time in his life, his very career was under assault. White prosecutors and judges are now moving to have him forcefully removed from his duties and stripped of all of his cases?
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Did he take a bribe?
Did he fail a drug test?
Was he accused of a salacious affair?
Did he fudge his credentials?
Was he working with witnesses behind the scenes?
The Courier-Journal
Protesters show their support for Stevens in November 2015.
No, none of that. Judge Stevens simply spoke out against the ridiculousness of a black defendant having an all-white jury in a town that is at least 21% African American. This, in Kentucky, where white supremacists openly attend Donald Trump rallies, is enough to cause a scandal. Judges speak their mind all the time, but in a society where the overwhelming majority of judges are white men, they rarely speak about racism.
Today, Judges Stevens has filed a lawsuit against the prosecutors and judges in Kentucky who are seeking to remove him — declaring that his words about racism, both in the court and out of the court, are not only protected by the First Amendment, but are his moral and ethical responsibility as a judge. The lawsuit does not seek financial compensation, but simply to stop the actions of the state against him and to provide a declarative statement that judges still have a First Amendment right to free speech.
His lead attorney, Larry Wilder, spoke to the New York Daily News,
“There is a reason that Free Speech is the 1st Amendment to our Constitution. Our founding fathers understood that without Free Speech the country that they envisioned could not endure.
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Judge Olu Stevens via Facebook
The judge has filed a lawsuit against the prosecutors and fellow judges who are seeking to remove him.
They understood that it was paramount to the survival of this country that all Americans be endowed with the right to express their opinions, both popular and unpopular.
This case asks a simple question: Does an individual abdicate Free Speech Rights when they accept the Robe of a Judge? I do not believe that was the intent of the great minds that drafted our Constitution. In fact, it may be more important that we know what our judges’ think and believe in their heart-of-hearts than to muzzle them with threats of discipline for speaking.
Judge Stevens did not engage in gratuitous commentary about a pending case. Judge Stevens merely responded to issues of great public importance that were raised by another judicial officer.
He did not speak about a case pending before him or an issue pending before him. He merely did what every other man, woman or child regardless of race or religion has a fundamental right to do… He spoke from his heart.”
What’s wild is that Judge Stevens is actually known to be a moderate, temperate judge who is tough on crime. His efforts to address issues of race have not been to thwart the system, but to ensure that all defendants, regardless of their innocence or guilt, receive a fair trial under the law.
That he is now being forced to file a lawsuit simply to remain on the bench is preposterous. Known to be both efficient and effective, he is now, by design no doubt, bogged down with a laborious fight just to do his job.
It appears that Kentucky loves a nice, genteel black man as long as he does not do or say anything to remind the state of his blackness. In corporate America, and as we clearly see in the legal community, African Americans are often keenly aware that speaking out against injustice may mean career suicide.
Here’s to hoping the courts side in favor of Judge Olu Stevens.
