ACA-8 advances

Today's DJ has Plan to end retention elections for appellate justices advances -- Supporters say the change would modernize an outdated process where justices are almost never unseated, but critics warn it could erode voter oversight and eventually apply to superior court judges.

• A proposed constitutional amendment to allow California appellate justices to skip retention elections passed its first committee test on Wednesday. But a former law school dean who has spoken out against the measure said it could apply to superior court judges as well.
• "Since that procedure was created in 1934, justices have successfully been retained in more than 99.5% of retention elections," Pellerin said. "The three Supreme Court justices who were defeated in 1986 are the only time in the state's history that a justice was not successfully retained."