B-PEP urges Gov. Wolf to nominate more Black judges
by Rob Taylor Jr.
Courier Staff Writer
What are the chances that an African American judge would have referred to a Black female juror in their court as “Aunt Jemima,” as Mark Tranquilli was accused of doing?
Tranquilli, who is White, was an Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas judge who resigned in November, months after he was accused of referring to a local Black female juror as “Aunt Jemima” and for using other phrases that suggested racial and discriminatory overtones usually not suited for a person entrusted with a black robe.
Tim Stevens, the President and CEO of the Black Political Empowerment Project, believes there’s a simple way for these types of alleged discriminatory actions to be prevented in the future—appoint more Black judges to the court. And to appoint them now, as there are three current openings on the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas bench.
Stevens directed his most recent letter to Pennsylvania’s top man, Gov. Tom Wolf, who has the authority to nominate individuals to the court.
“The number of African American judges in the Court of Common Pleas of Allegheny County had actually regressed from seven in the 1970s, to only three in 2019,” Stevens’ Dec. 1 letter to the governor read, obtained by the New Pittsburgh Courier. “In this past year where the phrase ‘Black Lives Matter’ became more a meaningful reality to many citizens of both Pennsylvania and the nation, regardless of race or party, it is the hope of the Black Political Empowerment Project that you as the governor of our commonwealth will utilize your power and influence to begin to correct this historic wrong that persists in our courts.”
The openings on the Allegheny County Common Pleas Court are due to Tranquilli’s resignation, the death of Judge John Zottola in October, and the retirement of Judge Don Walko in August. There are currently four Black judges in the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas—President Judge Kim Berkeley Clark, Judge Dwayne Woodruff, Judge Elliot Howsie, and Judge Joseph K. Williams III. Williams is in the orphans’ division; the others are in the family division. There are no Black judges in the criminal division.
Williams III Berkeley Clark Woodruff Howsie
Tranquilli’s alleged comments were made as he was presiding over a criminal trial, allegedly spoken to attorneys in Tranquilli’s chambers.
“There are still no African American judges in criminal court, yet the number of African Americans coming before criminal court judges remain significant,” Stevens’ letter read.
Governor Wolf’s most recent nomination to the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas was Judge Bruce R. Beemer, nominated in November 2019, confirmed in December 2019. Judge Beemer, who is White, currently serves in the criminal division. Prior to Judge Beemer, Gov. Wolf nominated Judge Elliot Howsie to the Court of Common Pleas’ family division. Judge Howsie was nominated in March 2019, and sworn-in two months later.
Judge Howsie, who was raised in Wilkinsburg and graduated from Central Catholic High School, became Allegheny County’s first African American chief public defender on March 19, 2012.
Stevens’ letter pointed out another “first”—he is lobbying for Gov. Wolf to nominate Rosemary Crawford, Esq., to the Allegheny County Common Pleas Court. She would be the first Black woman to be nominated or appointed to the Common Pleas Court in the county since President Judge Clark was appointed to the court in 1999 by then-Governor Tom Ridge.
“We (B-PEP) mentioned in our letter of March 11, 2019 that Ms. Crawford had been ‘highly recommended’ by the Allegheny County Bar Association in 2013, and was also endorsed by the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, the Tribune Review, and the New Pittsburgh Courier in that same year,” Stevens wrote.
“…With the number of anticipated openings we strongly request that you not stop with merely the appointment of Ms. Crawford, but that you use this opportunity to expand your ability to help correct the wrongs of the past.”
Crawford, a graduate of Georgetown University Law School, is a veteran attorney of 30 years. She’s had unsuccessful runs for the Common Pleas Court in 2013, 2015 and 2017, the Courier reported in a 2019 article. But she acknowledged in the article that she’d been getting increasing support from more Black community leaders. “I’m getting more interest with each run and that’s important for a grassroots campaign,” Crawford said in the Courier’s 2019 article. “Sometimes you just have to be committed, not give up. Because enough people have given up on our community. I’m not going to be on that list.”
There could be more judicial openings across the state in the Commonwealth Court, Superior Court and Supreme Court come next year. Stevens urged Gov. Wolf to do whatever he could to “influence the endorsements of African Americans” for those positions. A Courier analysis of those statewide courts shows that there are no African Americans on the state’s Supreme Court, Superior Court or Commonwealth Court.
Amanda Green-Hawkins, a Black woman who serves as associate counsel for the United Steelworkers, nearly won a seat on the state Superior Court last year. Green-Hawkins, a New Jersey native, moved to Pittsburgh in 2002 and also served on Allegheny County Council from 2008 to 2014. She’s been a recipient of the Courier’s Fab 40 under 40 award.
“We remind you of the loyalty of African American voters to the Democratic Party in both Pennsylvania and across the nation,” Stevens wrote to Gov. Wolf. “It has been well-established in the recent Presidential Election that the Black vote played a powerful and pivotal role in helping to elect the next President and Vice President of the United States of America, and that the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania helped to bring the Biden/Harris ticket to victory. The African American community now seeks a victory in the courts of Pennsylvania in terms of judges who are appointed and elected to serve the citizens of our commonwealth. …We look forward to hearing good news, real soon.”
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