Two Men, One Woman Sent To Daniels For High Court Consideration

Women members of the Indiana bar are not going to be happy with the three choices the Indiana Judicial Nominating Commission sent tonight to Gov. Mitch Daniels as candidates to replace retiring Justice Frank Sullivan. Only one of the three finalists is a woman. The Indiana Law Blog is reporting that the Commission has recommended Hamilton Superior Court Judge Steve Nation, Indianapolis attorney Geoffrey Slaughter and Tippecanoe Superior Court Judge Loretta Rush. Of the original 22 applicants for the vacancy, 16 were women compared to just six male candidates. Yet two of the three finalists are men, representing a third of the original male applicants for the vacancy. Indiana is one of only two states in the nation without a woman sitting on its Supreme Court. Nation is the oldest of the finalists at age 62. Slaugther is the youngest at 49. Rush is 54.