Americans hold contradictory expectations of judges as neutral and representative

Evidence

The debate over representativeness, like the tension between judicial independence and accountability, reflects the competing views Americans have about judges and judging. We want judges who are impartial, yet we also want them to be mindful of community sentiment. We want a legal system free of racial and gender bias, but we disagree about whether efforts to achieve demographic representativeness promote or jeopardize equal justice for all. — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 380

Categorization

• XREF: Captures the core tension this course and book return to across chapters: independence vs. accountability vs. representativeness. — connects to: Legal training and role orientation partially neutralize judges’ personal beliefs — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1366; Judges’ role conceptions can override their personal moral beliefs in voting — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1325

Broader Connections

• Legal training and role orientation partially neutralize judges’ personal beliefs #complicates (0.80) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1366
• Judges’ role conceptions can override their personal moral beliefs in voting #complicates (0.80) — G. Alan Tarr, Judicial Process and Judicial…, 1325