CHARLESTON – Following her acquittal, state Supreme Court Justice Beth Walker is thankful and excited to be back on the bench.
“I remain very grateful of how careful and deliberate the Senate was,” Walker told The West Virginia Record, referring to her impeachment trial earlier this month. “I look forward to getting back to the work of being a justice.”
Many balls remain up in the air with the state Supreme Court, such as possible impeachment trials for Chief Justice Margaret Workman, suspended Justice Allen Loughry and retired Justice Robin Jean Davis as well as temporary and fill-in justices hearing cases, an election for two vacant seats next month and federal sentencing hearings for Loughry and retired Justice Menis Ketchum.
“We’ve had to adjust our schedule a little bit for everything that’s been going on,” Walker said. “But, we heard cases last week, and we just admitted roughly 120 new lawyers the other day.
“We’re working hard on writing opinions as well as the administrative work that needs to be done. It’s nice to be able to focus primarily on that.
“There still are some proceedings that are pending, and they may go forward or may not. But that’s out of our hands. We’re just focused on the work of being justices and restoring the public’s trust.”
She said all of the negative focus on the Supreme Court is the result of the conduct of just a few people.
“We have some really good public servants in the court system,” Walker said. “I think that now we’ve been able to clear away some poor decisions and poor judgment and begin with more transparency, it’s going to be good. We have some great folks working at the Supreme Court and in the courts across the state.
“Now, that we’re hopefully close to putting all of this behind us, we can roll up our sleeves and get back to work.”
