Free Daily Headlines :

  • COVID-19
  • Vaccine Info
  • Money
  • Politics
  • Education
  • Health
  • Justice
  • More
    • Environment
    • Economic Development
    • Gaming
    • Investigations
    • Social Services
    • TRANSPORTATION
  • Opinion
    • CT Viewpoints
    • CT Artpoints
DONATE
Reflecting Connecticut’s Reality.
    COVID-19
    Vaccine Info
    Money
    Politics
    Education
    Health
    Justice
    More
    Environment
    Economic Development
    Gaming
    Investigations
    Social Services
    TRANSPORTATION
    Opinion
    CT Viewpoints
    CT Artpoints

LET�S GET SOCIAL

Show your love for great stories and out standing journalism

Malloy nominates Lubbie Harper for state Supreme Court

  • by Mark Pazniokas
  • February 23, 2011
  • View as "Clean Read" "Exit Clean Read"

Gov. Dannel P. Malloy named Appellate Judge Lubbie Harper Jr. to the Connecticut Supreme Court on Wednesday, choosing a judge who was sitting temporarily on the high court when it legalized gay marriage in Connecticut, a ruling the governor praised.

He will succeed Joette Katz, who resigned to become the commissioner of children and families.

harper, lubbie

Appellate Judge Lubbie Harper (l) was nominated to the Supreme Court by Gov. Dannel P. Malloy

By naming Harper, Malloy will get the political benefit of naming only the third black justice in the court’s history, plus an opportunity to make yet another appointment when Harper reaches the mandatory retirement age of 70 in November 2012.

Harper, 68, of North Haven was nominated as a Superior Court judge by Gov. John G. Rowland in 1997. He was named an appellate judge by Gov. M. Jodi Rell in January 2005. His Supreme Court appointment must be approved by the legislature.

“As a young man growing up in New Haven I could not have dreamed of being in the postion I find myself today,” said Harper, who didn’t begin a career in law until relatively late, when he was in his 30s. He first was a social worker. “Governor, I hope there are young people who take hope from the appointment you have made today.”

Harper is Malloy’s first judicial appointment. The governor said he was not bothered by Harper’s inability to serve beyond the end of next year.

“I can honestly tell you that time was not a factor,” Malloy said. “Having served on the court for whatever time he could serve was important to me.”

Malloy said that Harper deserves to end his career on the highest court in recognition of his life and his career. Malloy noted that Harper, sitting by designation on Supreme Court, was part of the 4-3 majority that legalized same-sex marriage in 2008, which Malloy called “one of the most important cases to come before the Supreme Court in its history.”

“I think human rights are terribly, terribly important,” Malloy said.

Harper was first named to the Superior Court bench in 1997, when Rowland and the legislature were under fire for the lack of diversity in the courts, an issue that remains today.

Thomas D. Ritter, then the House speaker, sought Harper’s help to broaden the pool of judicial candidates, then eventually recomended him as a nominee. Ritter was in the audience today at the press conference announcing his appointment.

Harper’s nomination was applauded by legislators, including Sen. Eric Coleman, D-Hartford, whose committee will hold the judge’s confirmation hearing March 11.

“Judge Harper is an admirable selection on the part of Gov. Malloy, and I am sure he will do an outstanding job as our newest Supreme Court justice,” said Coleman, the co-chairman of the judiciary committee.

“He has a keen understanding of the human condition and a wisdom that will serve Connecticut well,” said Senate Majority Leader Martin M. Looney, D-New Haven. “As a New Haven resident, I am also pleased that the governor has selected someone who has been a role model in New Haven since his days as a star athlete at Wilbur Cross high School.”

Connecticut’s highest court did not have a black justice until 1987, when Gov. William A. O’Neill named Robert D. Glass to the bench, 20 years after Lyndon Johnson appointed Thurgood Marshall to the U.S. Supreme Court. Glass retired in 1992.

Flemming L. Norcott Jr. was appointed the same year to the Supreme Court by Gov. Lowell P. Weicker Jr. He will reached mandatory retirement age in 2013.

Harper is a graduate of the University of New Haven and the University of Connecticut School of Law. He also has a master’s degree in social work from UConn. He is now the chairman of the Commission on Racial and Ethnic Disparity in the Criminal Justice System.

 

Sign up for CT Mirror's free daily news summary.

Free to Read. Not Free to Produce.

The Connecticut Mirror is a nonprofit newsroom. 90% of our revenue comes from people like you. If you value our reporting please consider making a donation. You'll enjoy reading CT Mirror even more knowing you helped make it happen.

YES, I'LL DONATE TODAY

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Mark Pazniokas

SEE WHAT READERS SAID

RELATED STORIES
CT budget leaders want to use massive savings to expand COVID-19 relief
by Keith M. Phaneuf

Gov. Ned Lamont’s administration expects to spend about $630 million less than legislators authorized.

The game is changing. Chris Murphy says he’s ready to play.
by Mark Pazniokas

The question for Sen. Chris Murphy no longer is where might he go next, but what can he do now.

Connecticut’s $100 million college shell game
by Stephen Adair

The plan to consolidate the 12 community colleges in Connecticut into one college with 12 campuses is called “Students First,” which is ironic because it does not fund students first.  It funds a new administration in a new, statewide bureaucracy. The Board of Regents (BOR) and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system office […]

Inconsistent television captioning is a barrier to equal access
by Jeffrey Bravin and Barbara Cassin

Our world long ago entered the age of the 24-hour news cycle, and a full understanding of the “who, what, when, where and why” of the news is critical for deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing citizens. Yet, Connecticut’s inconsistent quality of television captioning locks our community out of the complete sense of what is happening.

A just stimulus package is a start toward true racial inclusion
by Carlton L Highsmith

For centuries Blacks have been denied full participation in the American Dream. But for the sake of our collective progress, as we recover from the crippling economic effects of COVID-19, our country has a mandate to acknowledge its history of systematic institutionalized exclusionary practices and not repeat them.

Support Our Work

Show your love for great stories and outstanding journalism.

$
Select One
  • Monthly
  • Yearly
  • Once
Artpoint painter
CT ViewpointsCT Artpoints
Opinion Connecticut’s $100 million college shell game
by Stephen Adair

The plan to consolidate the 12 community colleges in Connecticut into one college with 12 campuses is called “Students First,” which is ironic because it does not fund students first.  It funds a new administration in a new, statewide bureaucracy. The Board of Regents (BOR) and the Connecticut State Colleges and Universities (CSCU) system office […]

Opinion Inconsistent television captioning is a barrier to equal access
by Jeffrey Bravin and Barbara Cassin

Our world long ago entered the age of the 24-hour news cycle, and a full understanding of the “who, what, when, where and why” of the news is critical for deaf, deafblind and hard of hearing citizens. Yet, Connecticut’s inconsistent quality of television captioning locks our community out of the complete sense of what is happening.

Opinion A just stimulus package is a start toward true racial inclusion
by Carlton L Highsmith

For centuries Blacks have been denied full participation in the American Dream. But for the sake of our collective progress, as we recover from the crippling economic effects of COVID-19, our country has a mandate to acknowledge its history of systematic institutionalized exclusionary practices and not repeat them.

Opinion Hamden taxpayers are left in the dark
by Lauren Garrett

“A budget is a moral document.” This phrase is often heard during budget season from both sides of the aisle advocating for their personal values. The municipal operating budget is the cost of running a town which includes paying for employees, schools, and other services. Asking residents to pay property taxes requires a public trust.

Artwork Grand guidance
by Anne:Gogh

In a world of systemic oppression aimed towards those of darker skintones – representation matters. We are more than our equity elusive environments, more than numbers in a prison and much more than victims of societal dispositions. This piece depicts a melanated young man draped in a cape ascending high above multiple forms of oppression. […]

Artwork Shea
by Anthony Valentine

Shea is a story about race and social inequalities that plague America. It is a narrative that prompts the question, “Do you know what it’s like to wake up in new skin?”

Artwork The Declaration of Human Rights
by Andres Chaparro

Through my artwork I strive to create an example of ideas that reflect my desire to raise social consciousness, and cultural awareness. Jazz music is the catalyst to all my work, and plays a major influence in each piece of work.”

Artwork ‘A thing of beauty. Destroy it forever’
by Richard DiCarlo | Derby

During times like these it’s often fun to revisit something familiar and approach things with a different slant. I have been taking some Pop culture and Art masterpieces and applying the vintage 1960’s and 70’s classic figures (Fisher Price, little people) to the make an amusing pieces. Here is my homage to Fisher -Price, Yellow […]

Twitter Feed
A Twitter List by CTMirror

Engage

  • Reflections Tickets & Sponsorships
  • Events
  • Donate
  • Newsletter Sign-Up
  • Submit to Viewpoints
  • Submit to ArtPoints
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Commenting Guidelines
  • Legal Notices
  • Contact Us

About

  • About CT Mirror
  • Announcements
  • Board
  • Staff
  • Sponsors and Funders
  • Donors
  • Friends of CT Mirror
  • History
  • Financial
  • Policies
  • Strategic Plan

Opportunity

  • Advertising and Sponsorship
  • Speaking Engagements
  • Use of Photography
  • Work for Us

Go Deeper

  • Steady Habits Podcast
  • Economic Indicator Dashboard
  • Five Things

The Connecticut News Project, Inc. 1049 Asylum Avenue, Hartford, CT 06105. Phone: 860-218-6380

© Copyright 2021, The Connecticut News Project. All Rights Reserved. Website by Web Publisher PRO