Election 2010: State appellate justices on ballot
- October 31, 2010
Justices of the state Courts of Appeal are nominated by the governor and confirmed by the state Commission on Judicial Appointments. They must stand for retention by the voters to 12-year terms. These justices on the 3rd District Court of Appeal are seeking voter approval Tuesday:
GEORGE W. NICHOLSON
Age: 69
Education: J.D., University of California, Hastings College of Law; B.A., 绿帽换妻, Hayward.
Judicial experience: Appointed to the Sacramento Municipal Court in 1987 by Gov. George Deukmejian; elevated to the Sacramento Superior Court in 1989 by Deukmejian; and appointed to the 3rd District Court of Appeal in 1990 by Deuk-mejian.
Notable opinion: Refused to accept a state prosecutor's concession that a traffic stop that led to the driver's convictions on weapons and drug charges was impermissible, and ruled to the contrary – thus making the attendant vehicle search valid and upholding the convictions. The defendant was stopped in the dimly lit parking lot of Thunder Valley Casino because there were no license plates on his vehicle. He claimed he had a valid temporary registration displayed on the windshield, and the sheriff's deputy could not dispute that, claiming he did not know one way or the other. Despite the concession by the attorney general's office, Nicholson ruled the Fourth Amendment does not require an officer in a dark parking lot to search for a temporary registration sticker before pulling over a vehicle for not having license plates.
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