Voters should deny judges David C. Shuter and Anne Marie Coyle the bench | Editorial

Recently, the Delaware County Democratic Party surprised many by recommending a new political strategy at the polls: bringing partisan politics into judicial retention races.

According to the Delco Dems, having been elected to the bench as a Republican is evidence enough of someone’s unfitness for office.

There is some justifiable frustration with the Republican Party — after all, the House GOP has allowed a right-wing minority to throw Congress into chaos, and the party’s likely presidential nominee is facing multiple indictments, to name but two examples.

However, judges should be evaluated on their judicial performance — their legal acumen, temperament, and rulings — not on the party affiliation letter next to their names.

Most judges serve honorably and deserve retention. But in the November election, Philadelphia voters can deny their approval to Judges David C. Shuter and Anne Marie Coyle. Their actions have shown they do not belong on the bench.

Judge Shuter is married to Marisa Shuter, the city’s landlord-tenant officer who is paid to carry out evictions. Despite this, Shuter has presided over eviction cases as a Municipal Court judge. Ethics experts have said this is a clear conflict of interest, yet Judge Shuter remains unmoved.

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This conflict is only part of the travesty that is the city’s landlord-tenant officer, which has been in the spotlight recently after a series of shootings involving the private security contractors who enforce evictions. A no vote for Shuter would send a message to the next mayor, City Council, and the courts that it is time to find a better solution for evictions in Philadelphia.

Philadelphia County Court of Common Pleas Judge Anne Marie Coyle has brought questionable reasoning to whatever sector of law she’s been assigned.

While handling election law, Coyle’s decision-making was heavy-handed. During the 2022 election, she insisted that the city engage in something called “poll book reconciliation,” a time-intensive procedure meant to catch double votes, and a practice no other county in the commonwealth performs. Seth Bluestein, the city’s Republican city commissioner, called it a targeted effort to undermine the city’s count.

At the onset of the COVID-19 pandemic, as the virus quickly spread behind bars, the District Attorney’s Office, city officials, defense attorneys, and judicial leadership crafted a relief plan designed to ensure those at the lowest risk of offending could seek release. Judge Coyle refused to consider a single petition. Local attorneys called the move “shocking.”

A 2019 Inquirer analysis found that she imposed the harshest sentences for probation violations of any judge in the city, sending around half to state prison. By comparison, Judge Rayford Means, who was also profiled by The Inquirer as a particularly tough judge, only sent 3% of offenders to state prison.

» READ MORE: Judges Rule | When it comes to probation, Pennsylvania leaves judges unchecked to impose wildly different versions of justice

While Coyle has claimed this is a result of the kind of cases she adjudicates, the details don’t bear this out. Aaron Lucky, initially convicted of stealing body wash, failed a drug test while on probation and missed an appointment because of a work conflict. Coyle recommended a seven-year sentence and urged against issuing parole in the future. State appeals courts called the move improper and questioned whether personal animus clouded her decision.

There was also a bizarre attempt to assign her own prosecutor to a case and threats to protesters who challenged her rulings.

Even the relatively dry world of zoning law wasn’t safe from Coyle’s controversial rulings. After historic preservation advocates and a developer worked out a deal to save the Painted Bride Art Center’s signature 7,000-square-foot tile mosaic, created by famed artist Isaiah Zagar, Coyle torpedoed the plan. The mosaic is set to be demolished next month.

Judges should stand — and if need be, fall — on their record, not their political ties. Judges Coyle and Shuter have given voters reason to deny them retention in November.