POCATELLO — John Bradbury declared his candidacy for Supreme Court Justice after 22 judges in the state were appointed, not elected during the past three years.

    Of those appointments, only one was a woman, and for the first time, no judges from Northern or Eastern Idaho are serving.

    Names of potential judges are submitted by the Idaho Judicial Council.

    “I don’t care if you’re Butch Otter, or Cecil Andrus, you’ll most likely appoint someone from your party,” Bradbury said.

    Bradbury is running against Justice Roger S. Burdick who has served on the bench for 28 years.

    “Our constitution requires the election of judges,” Bradbury said. “Yet early, planned retirements have permitted the political appointment of 44 out of 50 district and appellate judges. We need accountable courts.”

    Bradbury is also concerned that complaints against judges are not made public.

    “Judges whose conduct is open to the pubic are more likely to be fair than judges whose actions are shielded from public view,” he said.

    The high cost of justice is also an area Bradbury wants to reform.

    Bradbury also said it shouldn’t cost a day’s salary to challenge a parking a ticket, and he supports night and weekend courts to make the justice system more accessible and affordable to everyone.

    Born and raised in Orofino, Bradbury worked in the woods every summer until he joined the army.

    He attended the University of Idaho and received a law degree from the University of Michigan. Following law school, he served in military intelligence with the Eighth Army in Korea.

    Over the years, Bradbury represented clients in cases involving securities fraud, commercial transactions, environmental disputes, constitutional issues, zoning, discrimination and crime. He has 44 years of experience before state and federal courts and has been an Idaho District Judge for five years.

    He currently resides in Grangeville.

    If elected on May 25, Bradbury said he’ll work to ensure that defendants cannot disqualify an elected judge without sufficient cause. He would also like to see reform  regarding the number serious crimes that are settled with plea-bargains.

    “Judges should not pressure prosecutors to reduce criminal charges to avoid having to try cases,” Bradbury said.

   He added that judges should set early trial dates, closely monitor the case’s progress, and decide cases promptly to reduce costs.