NCJ Number
102372
Date Published
1985
Length
79 pages
Annotation
Results from a 50-State survey show the number and percentage of female and racial minority judges on Federal and State courts as of September 1, 1985, and the percentages of such judges are related to the judge selection methods of each jurisdiction.
Abstract
Women and minorities compose 12.6 percent of the 12,093 State court judges. There are 873 female judges (7.2 percent) and 465 black judges (3.8 percent). There are 150 Hispanic judges (1.2 percent), 77 Pacific Islander/Asian judges (0.6 percent), and 3 Native American or Native Alaskan judges. The percentage of women and minority judges on State and Federal benches varies greatly from State to State, from Hawaii with 78.7 percent female and minority judges to South Dakota with 2.5 percent. A higher percentage of women and minorities achieved judgeships through an appointment process rather than through an elective process, whether through judicial election, partisan election, nonpartisan election, or legislative election. 17 tables.