Within days of Gov. Rick Scott’s recent elevation of Miami-Dade County Court Judge Charles Johnson to the circuit bench, the governor was met with criticism over the alleged lack of diversity in his judicial appointments. A full review of Scott’s judicial appointments in Miami-Dade County, however, renders such criticism wholly unwarranted.
The criticism came in the form of an editorial that appeared in the Daily Business Review on Sept. 21 written by attorney Loreal A. Arscott, president of the Gwen S. Cherry Black Women Lawyers Association. Arscott has a little more than six years of experience practicing law with just over one year with State Farm Insurance and slightly less than five years with Children’s Legal Services. She expressed her displeasure that two African-American finalists — County Court Judge Wendell Graham and Assistant Federal Public Defender Ayana Harris — were passed over in favor of Johnson.
