Richard Palmer
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Richard N. Palmer is a former associate justice on the Connecticut Supreme Court. He was appointed to the court by Governor Lowell Weicker in 1993. He was reappointed and confirmed by the Connecticut General Assembly to a fourth eight-year term in March 2017.[1][2] Palmer retired on May 27, 2020.[3]
Education
Palmer received his undergraduate degree from Trinity College in 1972 and his J.D., with high honors, from the University of Connecticut School of Law in 1977. During his legal studies, he was a member of the Connecticut Law Review.[4]
Career
- 1993-2020: Justice, Connecticut Supreme Court
- 1991-1993: Chief state's attorney for Connecticut
- 1987-1990: Assistant U.S. attorney for Connecticut
- 1984-1986: Partner, Chatigny & Palmer
- 1980-1982: Assistant U.S. attorney for Connecticut
- 1978-1980: Attorney, Shipman & Goodwin
- 1977-1978: Law clerk to Judge Jon Newman, United States District Court for the District of Connecticut[4]
Awards and associations
Associations
- Co-Chair, Appellate Rules Committee, Connecticut Judicial Branch”;
- 2006-2017: Chair, Connecticut Criminal Justice Commission
- 2006-2008: Adjunct Faculty, Yale Law School
- 2000-2012: Member, Executive Committee of the Superior Court
- 2000-2006: Chair, Client Security Fund Committee, Connecticut Judicial Branch
- 1998-2008: Adjunct Faculty, Quinnipiac University School of Law[4]
Notable opinions
Mentally disabled man gets a new trial in 1987 murder case
In a 4 to 2 vote, the Connecticut Supreme Court overturned a 1992 murder conviction, ordering a new trial be conducted.
The defendant, Richard Lapointe, was charged with the murder of his grandmother, Bernice Martin. Lapointe suffers from Dandy-Walker Syndrome, a genetic brain abnormality resulting in water on the brain. Martin was found dead in her home in 1987, which was on fire. Prior to her death, Lapointe visited his 88-year-old grandmother every Sunday. Lapointe called the fire department to inform them of the emergency. Inside the home, firefighters found Martin's body, which had been strangled, stabbed 11 times and raped, according to police. Lapointe was arrested and charged with murder after a questionable interrogation; he was also charged with several other offenses, including capital felony murder and sexual assault. Lapointe was ultimately convicted by a jury in 1992, receiving life in prison without the possibility of parole. An appellate court overturned the capital felony murder and sexual assault convictions in 2012. Lapointe appealed the murder conviction, as well, and it reached the Connecticut Supreme Court.
Lapointe's attorneys argued that his mental disability makes him prone to making false statements, including false confessions, and susceptible to suggestion.
Justice Richard Palmer wrote the majority opinion for the court. The case came down to the fact that Lapointe did not receive certain exculpatory evidence that was in the hands of prosecutors during the time he was on trial. That evidence was handwritten notes of a police officer that "may have supported an alibi defense."[5] In 1999, the defense team found out about these notes, which indicated that Lapointe's wife at the time told police Lapointe was home at the time the fire started in his grandmother's home. Because the prosecutor was not forthcoming with this evidence, Justice Palmer wrote:
| “ | Fundamental fairness requires that the petitioner be afforded the opportunity to have a second jury consider that exonerating testimony.[6] | ” |
| —Justice Richard Palmer[5] | ||
Articles:
Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health
- Palmer wrote the majority opinion in Kerrigan v. Commissioner of Public Health, the October 10, 2008, decision that legalized same-sex marriage in Connecticut.[7]
Political ideology
In October 2012, political science professors Adam Bonica and Michael Woodruff of Stanford University attempted to determine the partisan ideology of state supreme court justices. They created a scoring system in which a score above 0 indicated a more conservative-leaning ideology, while scores below 0 were more liberal.
Palmer received a campaign finance score of -0.17, indicating a liberal ideological leaning. This was more liberal than the average score of 0.05 that justices received in Connecticut.
The study was based on data from campaign contributions by the judges themselves, the partisan leaning of those who contributed to the judges' campaigns, or, in the absence of elections, the ideology of the appointing body (governor or legislature). This study was not a definitive label of a justice, but an academic summary of various relevant factors.[8]
Recent news
The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms Richard Palmer Connecticut Supreme Court. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.
See also
External links
- Search Google News for this topic
- Connecticut Supreme Court
- MSNBC, "Skakel's attorneys argue for new trial in Conn.," March 26, 2009
- The Hartford Courant, "Apology Adds an Epilogue to Kelo Case," September 18, 2011
Footnotes
- ↑ State of Connecticut Library
- ↑ The Record-Journal, "Justice criticized for death penalty ruling reappointed by lawmakers," March 8, 2017
- ↑ Hartford Courant, "Connecticut Supreme Court Justice Richard N. Palmer retiring after 27-year career that included decisions on death penalty, same-sex marriage," May 24, 2020
- ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 Connecticut Judicial Branch, "Associate Justice Richard N. Palmer," archived November 16, 2019
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 '"Connecticut Law Tribune, "Supreme Court Majority Blames State, Overturns Murder Conviction," April 1, 2015
- ↑ Note: This text is quoted verbatim from the original source. Any inconsistencies are attributable to the original source.
- ↑ New York Times, "Gay marriage is ruled legal in Connecticut," October 10, 2008
- ↑ Stanford University, "State Supreme Court Ideology and 'New Style' Judicial Campaigns," October 31, 2012
Federal courts:
Second Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: District of Connecticut • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: District of Connecticut
State courts:
Connecticut Supreme Court • Connecticut Appellate Court • Connecticut Superior Court • Connecticut Probate Courts
State resources:
Courts in Connecticut • Connecticut judicial elections • Judicial selection in Connecticut
