Pennsylvania The '70' rule benching experienced state judges Constitutional amendment necessary to change rule is unlikely to find support

By Lauren Mylo The (Sharon) Herald SHARON, Pa. (AP) -- Supreme Court Justice Ruth Bader Ginsburg is 78. One of her predecessors, Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr., served on that bench until he was 90. But locally, Court of Common Pleas President Judge Francis J. Fornelli must step down this year as he hits the 70-year mark, and Judge John C. Reed isn't far behind. "Obviously there's an inconsistency between state courts and federal courts," attorney and state Rep. Mark Longietti, Hermitage, D-7th District, said. "I think 70 is an arbitrary age." In Ohio, where the retirement age is 73, lawmakers have voted to send Issue 1, which would raise the age to 82, to the fall ballot and let the voters decide. But local judges and officials don't see that happening in the Keystone State anytime soon. "I doubt very much whether the constitutional movement to extend retention to past 70 years would have a lot of legs," Senior Judge Michael J. Wherry said. Wherry, who called Fornelli a dear friend and an "outstanding" judge, said he's always been a supporter of age "and term" limits for both judges and elected officials. "Let's face it, these suits we walk around in don't get better with time," he said. "I really think 70 is fine. I think we should have (an age limit of) 70 for legislators." Wherry served on the court of common pleas until he was 67 when he chose not to run again to fill only three years of the 10-year term. He was appointed as a senior judge, an option Fornelli will explore as well, meaning he travels to other counties that need his experience and is encouraged to work no more than 10 days a month. Currently 75, Wherry will be forced to retire in three years at age 78 because of how the statute was set up when he obtained senior status, but he's fine with that. "When they created this beast called senior status, it had no age limit to it and we had judges in their 90s and they were getting pretty cranky and they got some pretty bizarre opinions," Wherry said. "It's not unfair at all" to face an age limit. A constitutional amendment would be necessary in Pennsylvania to increase the court of common pleas judge's age limits, but to change the senior judge age limit the Supreme Court would have to act. Fornelli acknowledged he has a vested interest in the matter, but he said he's never supported a mandatory retirement age. "I've always felt an important factor of wisdom is experience," Fornelli said. "Despite the fact I was the youngest judge ever appointed (at the time) and despite the fact I had all dark hair and not gray hair, I felt if I were going to be in front of a judge I'd want them to have gray hair." Fornelli, too, pointed out the discrepancies between an age limit for his court but not for others as well as the lack of age limits for legislators and even world leaders who are deemed fit to run countries but apparently not sit on a bench. Winston "Churchill was in his 60s and look what he accomplished, thank God," Fornelli said. Judges have an ethical obligation to report on colleagues they feel are incapacitated by age or alcohol, Fornelli added, so there are already mechanisms in place to make sure the best people are serving. "The probability of a right and just decision has increased with the experience they (judges) have assuming they're still physically and mentally vital," Fornelli said. "You're losing all that and I think that's something that shouldn't be lost." Published: Tue, Aug 9, 2011