The case against Judge Murphy

I’ve never thought electing judges was a good idea.

Allowing politics to mix with justice just has never struck me as an especially “just” – or wise - thing to do. There are too many pitfalls involvedn the political process.

I think David Murphy might agree.

The longtime Aston magisterial district judge yesterday found himself on the other side of the bench. He pleaded guilty in county court to forging signatures on his nominating petitions. Specifically Murphy entered a plea to 64 counts of forgery, identity theft and making false signatures, as well as two counts of perjury. That perjury count likely proved especially painful to a man who donned a judge’s robe most every day of his adult life.

District justices are an elected position. And to get on the ballot you have to have a certain number of signatures. For whatever reason, Murphy didn’t have enough names on his petitions.

So he decided to give himself a hand. Literally.

Murphy now admits he forged signatures on his petitions for the post he has held since 1991.

He easily won re-election in November. The problem was that, had it been known that he did not have the requisite number of signatures on his petitions, he might not have been on the ballot at all.

Murphy yesterday entered a guilty plea and was sentenced to four years of probation by visiting Bucks County Senior Judge John J. Rufe, who was brought in to hear the case by a special arrangement with the Delco court because of Murphy’s role as an agent of that court. He also obviously gives up his position on the bench. He has been on leave since the probe was first announced back in March.

“I’m satisfied that you are a good person who has made some bad choices,” Rufe said.

I agree with him. No doubt many will holler that Murphy is getting off easy because he’s a longtime judge and intimately knows many involved in the process.

Spare me. I think instead Murphy’s life has been hell every since he put pen to paper on those petitions. He no doubt knew what he did was wrong.

He still was easily re-elected by the people in Aston.

It’s time to get politics out of this process.

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