Delaware Chief Justice Leo Strine’s Monday retirement announcement prompted several elected officials to commend his work to make the state’s criminal justice system more fair.
Among them was chair of the state Senate Judiciary Committee Darius Brown (D-Wilmington) who also said he sees the upcoming vacancy an “opportunity.”
Gov. John Carney will nominate Strine’s successor, who must be approved by the state Senate.
Sen. Brown released a statement Monday noting there have been just two female justices and no justices of color on the state’s Supreme Court since it was created in 1951. He urged the governor to consider the “historic lack of racial and gender diversity” on the state’s highest court when nominating a successor.
“The Delaware judiciary still needs some work around representation of diverse communities and ethnic groups in our state,” he said. “Where nearly one in four residents are African American and nearly 33 percent of our population is minority, including African Americans, Hispanics and Asians, and that population continues to grow. And so I believe that the judiciary should resemble that.”
Brown also congratulated Strine on his career, noting the two worked together toward building a community court model to handle low-level misdemeanors. He commended Strine’s formation of the Access to Justice Commission which has examined racial disparities in the criminal justice system.
Strine joined the state Supreme Court when he was named Chief Justice in 2014.
