(C) Daily Montanan This story was originally published by Daily Montanan and is unaltered. . . . . . . . . . . Montana GOP lawmakers adopt judiciary report; Dems call it 'unseemly,' an 'outrageous attack' – Daily Montanan [1] ['Keila Szpaller', 'More From Author', '- December'] Date: 2022-12-22 “An outrageous attack.” “Unseemly.” “Unprecedented.” “Unjustified.” The two Democratic minority members of the Special Select Committee on Judicial Accountability and Transparency offered those descriptions of a Republican majority report adopted Thursday on practices of the judiciary. In the 2021 legislative session, Republican lawmakers pushed for more oversight of the judiciary, and a report released last week outlines concerns from the majority and potential solutions for the 68th Montana Legislature. (See sidebar below.) The report reiterates concerns GOP legislators raised previously, such as the propriety of having judges offer opinions on bills that affect the judiciary; the judiciary previously argued it’s been standard practice to do so, and a minority report notes the Code of Judicial Conduct not only authorizes such activity, it encourages it. Generally, the majority report noted lawmakers on the committee looked at judicial lobbying practices and public records retention and issued related recommendations: “It is essential to the integrity of the judicial branch that these problems and other issues examined in this report be fixed.” The minority issued a report in response and said its members did not participate in drafting the majority’s document. Democrats alleged the majority’s report contained “bombastic accusations” and is “striking for its total lack of substance.” Chief Justice Mike McGrath also sent a letter to the committee chairman in response. McGrath cited “dismay” at some of the language used, said the judicial branch already has implemented many of the report’s recommendations, and requested “libelous accusations” regarding his veracity be removed. “The lack of professionalism displayed here is astonishing and certainly does not comport with any sense of accepted legislative protocol,” McGrath wrote. “ … We hope that, moving forward, we will be able to maintain a respectful and positive working relationship.” Thursday, the select committee adopted the majority report 4-2 on a party line vote — with little discussion from Republicans and sharp rebuke from Democrats. Sen. Diane Sands, D-Missoula, said it could be grounds for a libel lawsuit. In its first public draft, the report described Montana Supreme Court Chief Justice McGrath as having “repeatedly lied” to the legislature, and the court administrator’s attorney as having lied — allegations McGrath disputed in his letter. McGrath’s name is a chapter heading in the document. At the meeting, Sen. Greg Hertz, R-Polson, said he removed the references to lies based on comments he received. However, Hertz, who led the committee, declined Sands’ request to remove a statement that said McGrath “misled and was untruthful” to the legislature. “I think those comments are still appropriate in regard to the information that is in the report,” Hertz said. Legislative records note Sands first served in the legislature in 1997, and she completes her service this year. Thursday, she said she believes deeply in democracy and the respectful way lawmakers have historically treated each other and other branches of government, but she said the report represents an “unseemly” breach of decorum, in particular by criticizing a person by name. At the end of the meeting, Sands said she was disappointed to depart with the vote Thursday as her last in nearly 30 years: “We are in fact attacking and trying to undermine the Constitution in very many ways, and I regret that my last vote and my last participation in a committee is regarding that issue.” Rep. Kim Abbott, the other minority member of the committee, agreed. Minority Leader Abbott, D-Helena, described the accusations and call for discipline of a private citizen in the report as “unprecedented,” and she said she wanted it to be clear the report was a product of the Republicans on the committee. She said even with the deletions, she was “deeply uncomfortable” to see the document advance. “You know me,” Abbott said. “It takes quite a bit to get under my skin, but this final report did that. I think it is outrageous, and I’ll be voting against it.” Also on a 4-2 vote on party lines, the committee opposed the official adoption of the minority report. In part, the minority argued: “Though the Majority Report adds nothing new, it is rife with errors, misstatements, hyperbole, and unsupported accusations.” Sands said it was important to include the perspective from the minority, but Hertz said he did not find its content significant, and regardless, it would remain part of the public record. [END] --- [1] Url: https://dailymontanan.com/2022/12/22/montana-gop-lawmakers-adopt-judiciary-report-dems-call-it-unseemly-an-outrageous-attack/ Published and (C) by Daily Montanan Content appears here under this condition or license: Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0. via Magical.Fish Gopher News Feeds: gopher://magical.fish/1/feeds/news/montanan/