Who Are the 9th Circuit Judges?

Welcome to the 9th Circuit, the largest appeals court in the country. The hallways are regal. The courtrooms are stunning.

Critics say some decisions are stunning too. The Pledge of Allegience was ruled unconstitutional, a ban on assisted suicide was also thrown out. Death penalty sentences heard here are frequently overturned.

Decisions here affect nearly 60 million people in nine western states. Maybe it's appropriate that the main headquarters is in San Francisco, one of the country's most liberal cities.

We've come here because CBN News has been given unique access, an opportunity to sit down with judges from the 9th Circuit.

Judge Clifford Wallace was appointed by President Richard Nixon. He's considered a judge that values judicial restraint.

CBN News asked Wallace whether he believes there is judicial activism on this court. His response? "Yes. I think there is. I don't think they feel they are activists but in my view I think there is some activism."

The 9th Circuit has been the most reversed appeals court in the nation. In 1996, the Supreme Court reversed 20 of their 21 decisions, but that's not the whole story.

Judge Carlos Bea, a George W. Bush appointee, sits on the 9th Circuit. He said, "There are some opinions which the political pundits have styled as liberal opinions. But if you take a look at those I think you'll see that those have decreased over the last few years."

It's true. Lately, the 9th's reversal rate is about the same as other appeals courts. in 2004, out of all the cases the Supreme Court agreed to here, the average reversal rate was 77 percent. The 9th's was about the same, but it does get reversed unanimously.

"That is a good indicator that somebody's trying to drive a particular position rather than adhering to the law," said Professor John Eastman, Chapman University School of Law.

Some of the Supreme Court justices language directed to the 9th has been very critical.

Eastman recalls one harsh rebuke over a death penalty case. He said, "The Supreme Court had to take the extraordinary measure of ordering that it not have any further jurisdiction over the case."

Stephen Reinhardt is the most reversed judge in America. In one year, seven of his 9th circuit decisions were unanimously overruled.

"He has said on a number of occasions in print and orally that he Supreme Court can't reverse all of his cases so he'll keep pressing whether he thinks it's consistent with their judgement on what the law is or not," Eastman said. "I that that's rather extraordinary."

Reinhardt's rulings support abortion rights, racial preferences, and other liberal positions. He even wrote about the need for more openly homosexual judges. He's a former Democratic activist who's married to a top ACLU official.

Retired Judge Lawrence Waddington is writing a book about the 9th Circuit.

"I think he's more concerned with advancing an agenda than he is really focusing on the legal issues that come down. As a result of that, his opinions reflect that," Waddington said.

Reinhardt is one of 26 current judges on the court. There are two vacancies.

Thirteen judges were nominated by former President Bill Clinton. Some have turned out moderate, others more liberal. President Bush nominated six, mostly conservative. Jimmy Carter nominated three, all liberal including Reinhardt. Two came from the first President Bush and two from President Ronald Reagan.

That's 16 from Democrat presidents, 10 from Republican presidents.

Professor Eugene volokh from UCLA School of Law said, "On balance, it's probably fair to say that it's a liberal court."

But maybe not as liberal as years gone by. Since Bush became president, the court is slowly starting to shift a little. The liberal label may be eroding.

Ninth Circuit Judge William Fletcher was nominated by President Clinton. He said, "It's inaccurate as a description. It's usually used as part of a political attack not merely on the 9th circuit but more broadly on the judiciary."

Bea said, "Whenever I hear the 9th circus or the nutty ninth or something like that, I immediately smile and engage the people and say relax, now tell me what your problems are and maybe I can answer them and maybe I can't."

He continued, "They have a long list, but they'll be talking about cases some years back."

Yet the judges on the 9th Circuit still find themselves in the headlines.

One reason could be the case load. The 9th handles 15,000 cases a year, far more than any other circuit. So more cases mean more controversy, but the liberal tag has stuck and many conservatives remain skeptical that the court is moderating.

The judges we talked to say be careful of generalizations. Don't be so quick with labels, they believe here at the 9th Circuit, behind these doors, is a place where you can find justice.