In the Atlantic: Shepherd quoted on dark money's influence on judges
"Courts, it is often remarked, control neither armies nor treasuries. Their power comes from their legitimacy," says The Atlantic. Emory Law Professor Joanna Shepherd is quoted in a story about the Republican legislature in West Virginia impeaching state supreme court justices. Post Citizens United, new judicial dark money overwhelmingly came from conservative groups, which resulted in a surge of TV attack ads on judges. They are often missing "any sort of nuance or explanation for why a judge voted that way . . . They fail to mention that there was an illegal search and seizure or something like that," Shepherd said, adding, "The system is forcing judges to act a lot more like politicians than as true judges."