Judicial crumbs
The U.S. Senate’s confirmation on Tuesday of Imperial Valley’s Ruth Bermúdez Montenegro as district judge for Southern California is a very good reason to open a chilled bottle of Dom Pérignon and caviar (as long as it is not Russian). Over her long legal career the judge continues to scale new heights professionally.
On a personal level, this nomination and confirmation by the Senate is worthy of congratulations for Montenegro and of celebration for the Valley. The same is true of Valley Native and Imperial High School alum Patricia Guerrero, who on also Tuesday was confirmed for a seat on the Supreme Court of California.
The qualities of Montenegro have made her an excellent candidate to fill one of the positions of the District Court for Southern California. Without a doubt, the judge will represent at the federal level not only the Imperial Valley community in a professional and responsible manner, but also women, and in particular those of Hispanic origin.
However, the appointment of the federal judge represents (if viewed coldly and objectively) as a crumb given that the courts have historically not reflected the communities they serve.
The problem is that in the more than 100 years since the founding of Imperial County, only two female lawyers have held magistrate jobs in the U. S. district court. That’s despite the fact there have been and continue to be many women who practice law at the same level as Montenegro and who would be assets on the bench For the record, I am not speaking specifically of Latina attorneys, but rather female lawyers in general.
Historically, the courts and many other positions at the local, state and federal levels have been dominated by men.
Not long ago, the first and only female member of the Imperial County Board of Supervisors in the history of local government departed this world. Likewise, few women have held other positions within the Imperial Irrigation District and Imperial County despite the abundance of talent within the local women’s sector. In part, this situation has occurred because many women have chosen in the past to dedicate themselves to their families, and in particular to their children, while at the same time sacrificing their desire to enter politics and thus preventing the public from benefiting from their enormous talents.
However, this situation could change during this year’s elections since there are several women running for offices that will be decided in June and November.
I hope I’m correct and that in the following months we can see women celebrating with great fanfare their victories at the polls. By then, the champagne will surely be more than ready to be served and celebrate with joy the arrival of more women to positions of the utmost importance, as has happened in the case of Judge Montenegro.