Casey Johnson Shares His Insights Regarding the Lack of LGBT Judges and Justices in the California Legal System

August 10, 2015

rainbow-flagOn Op-ed by AAC partner Casey Johnson was recently published in the VoiceofOC regarding the challenges that still persist within the California Judicial system when it comes to LGBT equality. “It is both ironic and sad that the very judicial institutions that we rely upon for our equality are themselves unequal and un-inclusive of LGBT Americans.”

Some of the troubling facts and statistics Casey reveals include:

  • Only 2.4% of all appointed California State judges and justices are openly LGBT;
  • More than 1/3 of judges refuse to answer questions regarding LGBT status;
  • Orange County’s first openly LGBT judge was appointed just last year, in 2014;
  • 78% of counties in California (45 of 58 counties) have no LGBT judicial representation;
  • And there has never been an openly LGBT Justice of the California Supreme Court.

So what can we do to help? Casey shares that in order to increase LGBT representation in the courts, the stigma of LGBT status must be dispelled, there must be more media coverage of successful, openly LGBT judges, and a California LGBT judges association should be created.

Read more from his article here.