 |
 |
Noreen Evans
By DEREK MOORE
THE PRESS DEMOCRAT
State Sen. Noreen Evans, who is said to be weighing a bid next year for a seat on the Sonoma County Board of Supervisors, also has submitted an application to become a justice on the California Courts of Appeal, sources confirmed.
The Santa Rosa Democrat is nine months into her first term as a senator representing the vast 2nd Senate District. The term runs through 2014.
Evans’ apparent search for new employment, coupled with her recent public pronouncements expressing dismay with Capitol life, suggest to some political observers that she is not happy in her current job.
“She’s made it clear she’s done with Sacramento,” Sonoma State University political scientist Dave McCuan said.
Evans did not respond Monday to messages seeking comment that were sent to her private email account and also left with her chief of staff, Tom Roth.
Asked about the senator’s application to become an appeals court justice, Roth replied, “I can’t comment on it.”
Evans submitted her application to Gov. Jerry Brown, who would have to appoint her to the position.
She would have to be confirmed by the state’s Commission on Judicial Appointments, according to a spokesperson with the state’s courts.
The process, which could take months, includes hundreds of surveys being sent to local attorneys, judges and others for their opinion on Evans as a candidate.
That process could coincide with Evans’ potential bid to replace outgoing county Supervisor Valerie Brown. Speculation that Evans will enter the fray gained credence earlier this month after Terry Price, her longtime political consultant, split with another candidate who also is seeking Brown’s seat.
Evans has long been open about her desire to become a judge. She has a law degree, and prior to first being elected to the state Assembly in 2004, she practiced law with an emphasis on civil litigation and appeals.
An appellate justice is paid about $205,000 a year. She currently earns $95,291 as a senator. A county supervisor is paid $134,000.
As a judge, she would not have to face the rigors of campaigning or dealing with the demands of elected office.
There are signs that those demands have been weighing heavily on Evans.
She faced withering public criticism earlier this year when she complained about having to give up her taxpayer-funded vehicle and about nearly having her pay docked because of the state’s delayed budget.
She also received blowback from members of her own party in August after she circulated an email in which she pointedly criticized an assemblyman for allegedly “hijacking” her legislation, including a link to a story about a 2007 police action at the man’s home.
Evans also was outraged that Assemblyman Roger Hernández, D-West Covina, had hosted what her email referred to as a “Hooters luncheon” at the Capitol, a reference to the restaurant chain that features waitresses dressed in revealing clothes.
Hernandez’s staff said they simply brought in chicken wings from the restaurant to serve at a potluck event hosted by legislators and that no Hooters staff was present.
“Being in electoral politics at any level of politics is terribly frustrating in California,” McCuan said. “It’s almost easier to affect public policy by going out and being a judge.”
There currently are three vacancies on the state’s appeals courts, including one created when Tani Cantil-Sakauye was selected as the chief justice of the state’s Supreme Court.
Subscribe by Email
Follow us on Twitter
No, CAL-FIRE, that awful-looking smoke IS not coming from a wild-fire.
Its coming from a discussion of Noreen Evans on WSC.
Steveguy — actually your idea for getting Evans on-board with SMART has some merit. As a top decision maker at SMART she would be recognized as being tremendously qualified because she has no qualifications, which of course puts her at the top of the pay schedule at SMART. Once hired, we can fire her ourselves in June when SMART is de-funded. We’ll still be on the hook for a huge severance and lifetime benefits, but in the long run it will be cheaper than allowing her to fill a position where her wrong-headed decisions end up having predictably really bad consequences and long term negative impact.
I would like to know why the PD is out to get Noreen Evans. She’s smart and capable and will always be my first choice in whatever race she’s running in.
I support you Noreen!!!!!!
Maybe Noreen can get a management position with SMART, same money. Maybe even get a $250,000 a year job. With lifetime benefits.
hahahahahahahahahahahaha She is joking?
Isnt she?
@John T
What you failed to cite was the rest of that sentence, typical conservative.
Here’s what I said: “Noreen Evans isn’t an elitist, she didn’t go to the Ivy league, she worked her A$$ off as a lawyer and made a reputation for her self and is now an ELECTED STATE OFFICIAL which part of this aren’t you following?” By all of that I simply meant to show that she is well qualified for a state judicial appointment coupling her time as an attorney and as a state offical.
Nice try, Champ. Better luck next time you try to skew what I say!
xoxo
When ambition and inability collide, any job is sought. She needs a year at In-N-Out Burger to get back in touch with real work.
If would be nice to see her work in the private section and not be a leech.
Wait, scratch that , she’s a liberal -thats not gonna happen
What in the world of law could be worse than the judges we have who legislate from the bench?
Allowing a kook like Evans to legislate from the bench!
Evans needs to GO Away! Puhleeze!!
Noreen has many options in the Private and Public sector.
While I may not agree with her politics having options in life when it comes to finding a job is rare these days.
I have to believe that if money was her only objective she could do far better in the private sector as a lawyer.
Those of you with a knee jerk hatred of the lady should be happy she’s considering getting out of the political arena.
Isn’t that what you wanted?
@Dan D
She still practices law when the legislature is out of session (another fantastic reason for her to become a judge! She cares about the law!), so yes her credentials are “up-to-date”, stop making stuff up. Conservatives once again proving they have no actual reason to dislike someone so they create their own delusional ideas to help them better sleep at night.
@ Not A Chance wrote:
“…and is now an ELECTED STATE OFFICIAL which part of this aren’t you following?”
Sorry! I guess I missed the memo that says being an “ELECTED STATE OFFICIAL” automatically qualifies someone to be an appeals court judge.
For some reason I thought we had higher standards.
Joe,
Your suggestion that she could work as a DMV Court Hearing Officer sounds appropriate.
Except we really don’t need the DMV any longer. Half our drivers on the road are UN-licensed in Sonoma County.
But she clearly wants POWER.
She is simply looking for the nexgt gravy train. And at $205,000 I bet she can’t wait. I mean life is so tough for her when she is only making $95,000 plus tax free per diem.
I hope for us the salary comes with a COLA increase, otherwise we will be hearing from her soon that her judge pay isn’t keeping up with inflation.
Let me get this straight, the Chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee and member of the California Judicial Council is a potential candidate for an appellate seat, and this is a surprise to the PD.
There is clearly a pre-determined story line the PD has come up with and they aren’t willing to write articles that deviate from it. The claim that Noreen is looking at running for supervisor is based on Terry Price resigning from Mark Bramfitt’s campaign, but the fact that Terry is also Susan Gorin’s Campaign Consultant and that she has said she is going to run for office is not mentioned as another possible theory for Price’s resignation.
This is just a really bad article with half information, innuendo and clearly missing background information.
I do not see where she has the experience, maybe court commissioner or as an administrative law judge for the DMV would suit her skills more closely.
Hey now, I want to be a Rock Star, but I have neither the looks nor the talent.
When Noreen Evans was on the SR City Council I actually watched the meetings on TV. ( Yes, Tuesday nite TV ). She always had the weirdest little rants and ‘changes’ to someone’s well thought out plan.
I still can’t understand how she has been elected– Well, blind support to the Public Unions and the very far left helped. —
She is grandiose by definition.
Sonoma County, please don’t keep voting for her style of Politician. We need level-headed people in office now, but we keep getting served up clueless ideologues.
Just watch her get a $162,000 a year gig like the Parole Board, some Environmental Commission, etc that meets a few times a year.
By the way, Mike Martini would have been a far better rep for us. I think that he got disgusted how the Sonoma County Democratic Central Committee helps the clueless and easily used into office.
I could go on and on, but it looks like there is plenty of the same thoughts here.
I’m guessing she doesn’t even have her Continuing Legal Education requirements up to date. Legislators exempted themselves from those requirements. Another example of legislators looking out after their own self-interests.
“sources confirmed”? (!) I guess the PD hates Noreen Evans so much they don’t mind showing their lack of journalistic standards and poor reporting as long as they can attack senator Evans in the process. Derek Mooore should write for the Enquirer. He certainly has the temperment for it. …now if he could just improve his writing skills.
Wow WSC three posts on the wall here and you are all wrong, wasting no tine this morning I see!
@Non-Violent
Noreen Evens worked as a non-governmental attorney before she ran for city council. She spent a large portion of her life in the private secotr before she became part of the public sector, the sector that serves you, I assure she is better suited for the job than you or I.
@Jon T
Having seen some of your posts before I recognize that you believe nobody could possibly be a greater authority than you to hand out job applications. Noreen Evans isn’t an elitist, she didn’t go to the Ivy league, she worked her A$$ off as a lawyer and made a reputation for her self and is now an ELECTED STATE OFFICIAL which part of this aren’t you following? She has given her life to the law and public service; few combinations better qualified to serve as a judge.
@Dunlop
LOL, so you’re the kind of person who uses Wikipedia to attack with, I see.
Get a life.
“Being in electoral politics at any level of politics is terribly frustrating in California,” McCuan said. “It’s almost easier to affect public policy by going out and being a judge.”
That’s a big part of the problems we have – a judge or panel of several judges should not be affecting public policy other than if it violates the Constitution(s). That is a legislative and voters function.
Also the fact that an appellate justice position is a coveted political appointment with lots of applicants tells you that the taxpayers don’t need to pay $205,000 a year (plus pensions) to fill the positions.
Career government workers are incapable of finding work in the private sector. Most have no skills beyond lying, brown-nosing and transferring around via connections. This is why they ended up in the government to begin with.
I imagine she has pulled enough favors in her position to get this appointment. You see, it is all about paying a bribe and then getting an appointment. Look at the Obama Administration. They are all the same. This is why our government is a complete failure at every level, with very few exceptions.
We get what we deserve by allowing these life-long leeches get elected to begin with.
Evans does not have the required judicial temperment to become a judge. There are many more lower court judges who are much better qualified to become a justice on the California Courts of Appeal.
Hopefully Brown will have better sense then to make a totally political appointment with Evans and demean the office.
Seriously????
Come on now!!!!!!!
Someone has an amazing sense of humor!!!!!!
Seriously???????
Can you only think of how this Loon will run her court room! This would be the perfect candyland for her. A place where she could make her own rules and eveyone would have to listen to her crazy rants. Who do we call to protest!
Awww, poor worthless Noreen now wants to be a judge. Talk about inspiring to achieve the “Peter Principal” in a hurry. She knows that unless she keeps feeding in the public troth she wouldn’t stand a chance. And actually having to work in the private sector is so far removed from her, it might as well not exist.
The really worse thing here is that “Moonbeam II” (the sequel) might just go ahead and appoint her. Lets see, worthless as a legislator, worthless as a senator (just cries and bitches all the time) lets put her on the California Bench and mess things up even more than when he put Rose Bird there. Probably appeals to him.
I say that about the only good thing that could come of this is that we would be rid of her. Appoint her to the Modoc County Civil Court in Cedarville (population 514) and let her sit there and rot. Decide issues involving ground squirrels and barn owls.
Evans is not qualified to sit on an appeals bench. She has neither the requisite practical experience or exceptional academic credentials.
Frankly, I doubt she is qualified to sit as a local Superior Court judge.
Evans may not have the temperment consistent with the role of judge.
Just another example of how government people feel inadequate to survive in the private sector job arena.