Michael Vargas wrote an article for San Jose Spotlight about the need to expand the federal judiciary.
“Over the past 30 years, California’s population has grown by 33% and its GDP has more than doubled, resulting in a significant rise in court filings. Yet, there have been no permanent judgeships created, resulting in an increase in the number of cases per judge from 492 to 568 in the Northern District, which covers San Jose and Silicon Valley. It’s even worse in California’s other three District Courts, where judges are all handling 200+ cases more than is recommended by the JCUS.
This burden has real consequences for Americans. One of the most pressing examples is the demise of the writ of habeas corpus. A writ of habeas corpus (or habeas petition) is a post-conviction mechanism by which a person convicted of a crime can attempt to prove their innocence. Alexander Hamilton called the writ of habeas corpus the “bulwark” of the Constitution, and the U.S. Supreme Court has called it “the fundamental instrument for safeguarding individual freedom against arbitrary and lawless state action.” ”
