FILL-IN JUDGE FIRED FOR REFUSAL TO HEAR DRUG CASES

A judge pro tem was fired Thursday, his first day on the job at a Mesa
courthouse, for refusing to hear drug cases.

Arizona Chief Justice Charles Jones fired Marc Victor, a Mesa defense
attorney, saying Victor "expressly declared his inability to be impartial
in the application of the law and the disposition of cases before him."

But Victor, a marijuana legalization activist, said he recused himself only
on drug cases, not all cases.

"I thought it was the honest, up-front thing to do," said Victor, who
brought a six-page proposed "minute entry" with him to Maricopa County
Superior Court, outlining why he believes drug laws violate the U.S. and
Arizona constitutions.

Victor is a member of the National Organization for the Reform of Marijuana
Laws' legal committee. NORML supports legalization.

Victor's document stirred a hornet's nest when it reached Chief Presiding
Criminal Judge Thomas O'Toole and Presiding Superior Court Judge Colin
Campbell.

After conferring with Campbell, O'Toole called Victor at the Mesa
courthouse and dismissed him, saying "we're not happy with your
performance," Victor said.

Pro tem judges are unpaid attorneys who fill in for full-time judges.

"It made me feel there is no room for dissent on the bench," Victor said.
"That's what shocked me, how quick they threw me off the bench."

He said the incident shows there is a litmus test that bars judges who
oppose drug laws.

J.W. Brown, a Superior Court spokeswoman, said pro tems "serve at the
pleasure of the court, and his services were not needed."

Jones rescinded Victor's appointment as the judge pro tem at Campbell's
request, according to a brief court document.

Commissioner Elizabeth Arriola had agreed to handle the court's drug
calendar and the seven drug cases on Victor's routine morning calendar.