AUSTIN - If political contributions are grounds for disqualifying judges in Texas, the judiciary may be in trouble. Texas civil and criminal court judges in the past five years have made more than $775,000 in partisan political donations.

U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay, R-Sugar Land, got state District Judge Bob Perkins removed from his criminal case this week based on $5,180 in political donations Perkins made to partisan organizations and Democratic politicians. A visiting judge accepted DeLay's arguments that the donations ruined Perkins' appearance of impartiality.

That ruling and the amount of money judges have donated raised questions Wednesday about whether the DeLay case opens the door for future action against judges in divisive court battles.

"This case may set a precedent for asking judges to recuse themselves because they make political contributions," said Craig McDonald, executive director of Texans for Public Justice, a campaign finance advocacy organization. "Judges are political animals."

But DeLay's lawyers say nothing about this case will set the stage for other judges being removed. They say the case hinged on who Perkins donated to and not the amount of his donations. It is legal for Texas judges to make donations.

"This is a unique case. A case like this is only going to happen once every 10 years," said Houston attorney Dick DeGuerin. "It only fit these circumstances."

Replacement seen soon
Retired District Judge C.W. "Bud" Duncan Jr., a Democrat, removed Perkins from the case Tuesday. Administrative Judge B.B. Schraub, a Republican, plans to choose Perkins' replacement this week.

Schraub told the Associated Press that he will pick from a field of retired judges outside Travis County, where DeLay was indicted on charges of money laundering and conspiracy in a campaign finance scheme.

"I'm going to try to do it this week if I can find a judge (who) has the characteristics we're looking for and will do it," said Schraub. He did not specify what those characteristics were.

Getting Perkins removed from the case was a major victory for DeLay because Perkins already had upheld earlier indictments that were returned against DeLay's co-defendants: John Colyandro and Jim Ellis. A new judge will give DeLay's defense an opportunity to challenge the indictments before a fresh eye.

The new judge also will take up motions to move the case out of highly Democratic Travis County.

DeLay's lawyers did not argue that Perkins would be unfair, only that his political donations would give the appearance of bias to average citizens.

The Texas Ethics Commission shows almost 800 judges in Texas — ranging from justices of the peace to the Texas Supreme Court and the Court of Criminal Appeals — have given $775,000 in state elections since 2000.

The Federal Election Commission showed $30,635 had been donated since 1997 to federal political committees by individuals in Texas who identified their occupation as "judge."

Some of the judges who made the biggest donations were civil judges, including two Republican judges in Harris County. Civil District Judge Sharolyn Wood made $19,740 in donations and Family District Judge Georgia Dempster has donated $19,495 since 2000.

And Perkins is not the only Travis County criminal court judge to make political donations. Only one Austin-based criminal court judge has not made a donation since 2000.

Majority donate
Seven of nine criminal district court judges in Tarrant County made partisan political donations, and 12 of 17 criminal judges in Dallas County made partisan political donations.

In Harris County, 20 of the 25 criminal courts judges made political donations, according to the Texas Ethics Commission.

Two of them — Judges Marc Carter and Jim Wallace — almost doubled the dollar amount of Perkins' partisan donations. Both Republican, Wallace made $15,450 in donations and Carter donated $14,560.

The biggest difference between Perkins and almost every other judge in Texas was his donations to national political organizations.

Almost all of the donations made by the Harris County judges were to local political organizations. The same was true in Dallas and Tarrant counties.

Those judges who made national donations usually were to President Bush's election campaign or a specific candidate for Congress or U.S. Senate.

DeGuerin said many judges donate to local political groups to buy a ticket to a dinner or to help a friend running for office.

"You have to look at more than the numbers. And you have to look at the timing," he said.

DeGuerin said the specifics of Perkins' donations showed he was a "staunch Democrat" who would be presiding at the trial of one of the nation's top Republicans.

In Perkins' case, the judge made $400 in donations to the Democratic National Committee and $200 to MoveOn.org. DeLay's lawyers argued that both groups used DeLay as a political "whipping boy" to raise money.

Perkins also made a $100 donation in 2002 to the Texas Partnership Political Action Committee, which opposed the DeLay-founded Texans for a Republican Majority in state House elections. How the DeLay committee spent corporate money is central to the indictments.

"This (ruling) is a one-way, one-time ticket," said DeLay lawyer Richard Keeton of Houston. "Whether you want a particular judge, up or down, rarely depends on whether he's a Democrat or Republican."

Perception unaffected Keeton said party affiliation and political donations will not affect the public perception of whether a judge is fair in an average prosecution.

"Most criminal defendants, whoever they are ... are in there because they stole something or whatever ... The judge isn't going to know whether they are a Democrat or a Republican," Keeton said.

r.g.ratcliffe@chron.com

Commentary:
Judges should be banned from giving money to any political group, period! When almost every judge gives to a candidate, how can there be real justice. I recall a indictment against Sen. Hutchinson some years ago. Was that judge bought and paid for by the GOP? It's highly likely.