Today, I’d like to tell you about a recent event in the life of Judge Nancy Norelli as carried in the Charlotte Observer this week.  It’s about her reassignment.

Nancy Norelli was the first female lawyer to join Charlotte’s big law firm Helms, Mulliss & Johnston (it later became Smith, Helms, Mulliss & Moore).  That was way back in 1977.  In 1986, she broke the glass barrier to become a partner of the city’s major law firms – Kennedy, Covington, Lobdell & Hickman.

Later she opened and ran her own law firm, and was also elected to head the Mecklenburg County Bar, a rare honor for a woman lawyer.  In 2000, she became a judge.

She was recently removed from the criminal court and assigned to adjudicate upon child custody, child support, and divorce cases.  The reason?  As explained by Chief District Judge Fritz Mercer, complaints by the police against the rulings of Norelli influenced him to move her to family court from the criminal court.

Norelli, 56, stood by her decisions and said she does her job as the police do theirs.  She said that she acts according to law and puts her heart in her work in the courtroom.

There is no allegation of misconduct against her from any quarters, and Paul Ross, the executive director of the N.C. Judicial Standards commission reported that Norelli has never been disciplined for misconduct in her years as a judge.

There is no allegation of corruption.

There is nothing against her except the fact that some police officers did not see eye to eye with her on some of her rulings.  I thought the system took into account such situations, and that is why the founding fathers of our constitution separated the executive from the judiciary, and the judiciary from the legislative.  Democracy is assured through the system of checks and balances.  Democracy expects the police to submit the case, and the judge to decide on it.

It is quite surprising that the Chief Judge acted on the opinion of police officers that Norelli did not know the law.  Given her track record of competence and honesty, that is hard to believe.  Her only offence seems that she is a trailblazer against the medieval mindset.  Should people like her be left to do their work or should they worry after politics and vested interest groups?