LOS ANGELES—March 1, 2002--- Based on new information of a serious nature that has come to its attention, the Los Angeles County Bar Association’s Judicial Elections Evaluation Committee has withdrawn its rating of “qualified” issued to Donald Renetzky, a candidate for Superior Court Office #2, pending further investigation.

For your reference, the revised ratings appear below.  The Committee evaluated the candidates running in the seven contested Los Angeles County judicial races.  The candidates are rated “well qualified,” “qualified,” or “not qualified.”
 
SUPERIOR COURT OFFICE NO. 2
 Hank Goldberg – Well Qualified
 Donald Renetzky – Evaluation Withdrawn
Joseph “Joe” Deering – Well Qualified

SUPERIOR COURT OFFICE NO. 39
 Larry H. Layton – Qualified   
Richard E. Naranjo – Qualified
 Craig Renetzky – Qualified

SUPERIOR COURT OFFICE NO. 40
Ross A. Stucker – Not Qualified
Floyd V. Baxter – Well Qualified

SUPERIOR COURT OFFICE NO. 53
Robert Harrison – Qualified 
Lauren Weis – Well Qualified 
H. Don Christian – Well Qualified
Richard A. Espinoza – Qualified
 
SUPERIOR COURT OFFICE NO. 67
David Gelfound – Qualified
David Crawford, III – Qualified    
Paul A. Bacigalupo – Well Qualified   
Steven Lubell – Well Qualified
 
SUPERIOR COURT OFFICE NO. 90
Robert Simpson – Well Qualified  
Kenneth E. Wright – Qualified

SUPERIOR COURT OFFICE NO. 100
John C. Gutierrez – Qualified
Thomas H. Warden – Not Qualified
Richard F. Walmark – Well Qualified 
 
Because there is often little information publicly available about judicial candidates, the County Bar considers this report to be one of its most important public services.

The evaluations are the opinion only of the committee, whose 32 members represent a cross-section of the legal community by gender and ethnicity, including lawyers from the public and private sectors, corporate counsel, sole practitioners and members of small, medium and large firms.  The committee members also represent a broad geographic spectrum of cities and towns throughout the county.

The County Bar and the committee neither endorse nor oppose the election of specific candidates.  The evaluations are not intended to be comparisons of one candidate against another, nor do they necessarily reflect the ability of the candidates to practice law.  The committee firmly emphasizes that it limits its evaluations to the candidates’ present qualifications for the judicial offices they seek.

Since 1976, the County Bar has been issuing its judicial evaluation report to encourage a better informed electorate.  Voters may view the full report from the County Bar’s web page at http://www.lacba.org/judicialevaluations.
 
Los Angeles County Bar Association (LACBA) is the largest local voluntary bar association in the nation with a membership of 25,000+ attorneys.  The County Bar is extensively engaged in advancing the administration of justice and meeting the professional needs of the legal community.