Shipp: Justice may be up for sale in elections

Bill Shipp writes:

In a normal Georgia election year, Supreme Court Justice Carol Hunstein might be spending her spare time working on an inspirational autobiography, but this is not a routine election year. Hunstein has been singled out for defeat. And she is embroiled in a fierce contest against an ex-official of the federal Homeland Security Administration.

One can understand why former Bush administration lawyer Mike Wiggins would seek new career opportunities outside Washington, but taking on Hunstein seems an awfully tough place to start. Hunstein's life story reads like an Oprah Winfrey special. Try this passage from her campaign Web site:

"Born into humble circumstances, Carol contracted polio when she was 2, survived her first bout of bone cancer at age 4, and lost her mother at age 11. Her adolescent years were marked by frequent hospitalizations for cancer. Carol's father discouraged his six children from pursuing an education beyond high school. She married at 17, became a mother at 19, and was abandoned by her husband by age 22. That same year, Carol lost a leg to cancer and was told by doctors she had only a year to live.

"Struggling to find work to support herself and her son, Carol soon realized the value of an education. She went to college on a state vocational rehabilitation scholarship and to law school on the Social Security benefits she received after her former husband died. There were times when Carol could not afford to eat. ..."

She went on to become the first woman elected to the DeKalb County Superior Court bench. Fourteen years ago, then-Gov. Zell Miller named her to the Georgia Supreme Court. Honored repeatedly for her good works, Hunstein's peers give her good marks for high intelligence and an unmatched work ethic.

Now, however, leaders of the Georgia Chamber of Commerce have chosen to make her a target for toppling Nov. 7. They say she is an "anti-business" judge, though her record (and the names of some of her backers) suggests that, if anything, she's a bit too cozy with big business.

The re-election - or defeat - of Hunstein could shape legal issues in Georgia far more profoundly than the recent debate over the constitutional amendment on gay marriage and civil unions.

Wiggins says he is running to establish more "balance" on the Georgia Supreme Court. "Some on the current Supreme Court do not reflect the conservative judicial philosophy the vast majority of our citizens embrace," he says.

The Georgia Chamber of Commerce earlier circulated a memo criticizing the opinions of Hunstein and two other justices up for re-election, Hugh Thompson and George Carley. Only Hunstein drew an opponent.

Sources say Gov. Sonny Perdue actively sought a candidate to run against Hunstein. Those approached included Public Service Commissioner Bobby Baker and Fulton Superior Court Judge Craig Schwall. Both declined. Then along came Wiggins. His major supporters include Home Depot co-founder Bernie Marcus and Republican Congressman Lynn Westmoreland.

Hunstein has her heavyweight supporters too, including Miller and Atlanta attorney Oscar Persons, a longtime influential Republican.

Persons says of Wiggins: "When he talks about ideology, it seems to me that he wants to be an activist judge."

Other Hunstein supporters include former Attorney General Mike Bowers and former Gov. Roy Barnes. Those strange political bedfellows co-chaired a fundraiser for her in Atlanta on Sept. 20. Then, on Oct. 4, big-time banker Jim Blanchard and international insurance mogul Dan Amos hosted an event in Hunstein's honor.

Despite the all-star cast of backers, Hunstein is far from a cinch to win re-election. Insiders say Hunstein's opponents already are putting out rumors she is Jewish, which she is not, and that she is gay, which she also is not. (There's nothing like a high-road, issues-only judicial campaign.)

More importantly, Hunstein's opponents have set up the Safety and Prosperity Coalition to funnel legally unlimited sums into attack ads.

The insertion of that cash into the contest could make the race as expensive as any in Georgia history for a judicial seat. It also could set a precedent for judicial politics in the Peach State. Future races for appellate posts may turn into dollar-sodden brawls between candidates sponsored by the trial bar and those backed by insurance companies. Such scenarios already are played out in Alabama and Texas. The results have not been pretty. They leave the impression important judicial decisions have a "for sale" sign attached.