Kevin Dougherty

American judge (born 1962)

Kevin Dougherty

Justice of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court
Incumbent
Assumed office January 4, 2016 (2016-01-04)^[1]^[2]
Preceded by	Ronald D. Castille
Judge of the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas of Philadelphia County
In office 2001–2015

Personal details
Born	(1962-05-19) May 19, 1962 (age 62)^[3] Philadelphia, Pennsylvania^[3]
Political party	Democratic
Relations	Johnny Dougherty (brother)
Alma mater	Antioch School of Law Temple University

Kevin M. Dougherty (born May 19, 1962) is a justice of the Supreme Court of Pennsylvania. Before his election in 2015,^[4] Dougherty had served on the Pennsylvania Court of Common Pleas in Philadelphia since 2001,^[5] serving as an administrative judge of the trial division.^[6]

Biography

Dougherty grew up in South Philadelphia in what he described as a "very blue-collar, working-class neighborhood", and was the first from his family to graduate college, working three part-time jobs as he attended Temple.^[7] He graduated from the Antioch School of Law in Washington, D.C. in 1988, and is a graduate of Temple University.^[7]

He was appointed to the bench by Governor Tom Ridge in 2001, and was elected to the first of two 10-year terms later that year,^[5]^[7] receiving the most vote among 14 candidates. After his election, he requested to be assigned to the family division, where he felt he could have the most significant societal impact,^[8] and has prided himself on helping families and children during his judicial career.^[9] Dougherty became Supervising Judge of the Juvenile Division of Philadelphia Family Court in 2003.^[8]^[9] There he implemented reforms like easing access to the court and what he called a "changing of the culture" among a judiciary of mostly older judges. He received 78 percent of the vote when he ran for retention in 2011, and received support from both Democrats and Republicans.^[9]

He ran as a Democrat for Pennsylvania Supreme Court in 2015,^[10] and was part of a Democratic sweep of all three court vacancies, along with David Wecht, and Christine Donohue. They defeated Republican candidates Judith Olsen, Michael George, and Anne Covey, in a campaign that saw more than $15 million in donations from special interests.^[4] Dougherty received a "recommended" rating from the Pennsylvania Bar Association, and received strong support from organized labor groups,^[5] in part due to Dougherty's relationship with his brother, indicted Philadelphia labor leader John J. "Johnny Doc" Dougherty.^[11] Dougherty was the campaign's top fundraiser,^[5] raising more than $3.5 million.^[11]

References

^ "Drawing determines court seniority". Unified Judicial System of Pennsylvania. December 3, 2015.
^ "New PA Supreme Court Justices Poised For Swearing In". 90.5 WESA. December 30, 2015.
^ ^a ^b American Bar Association Questionnaire
^ ^a ^b Kraus, Scott; Sheehan, Dan; Assad, Matt (November 4, 2015). "Incumbents fare well in Lehigh Valley elections". The Morning Call. Archived from the original on November 5, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c ^d "Snapshot look at candidates for Pa. appellate courts". Delaware County Daily Times. Associated Press. November 3, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
^ Williams, Damon C. (October 31, 2015). "Black clergy group makes pick in state court race". Philadelphia Tribune. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c "Get to know the candidates for state Supreme Court". LNP Media Group. October 31, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
^ ^a ^b "About Kevin". Kevin Dougherty for Supreme Court. 2015. Archived from the original on October 25, 2015. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
^ ^a ^b ^c Brandolph, Adam (May 1, 2015). "Philadelphia's Dougherty brothers spotlight differences as one vies for Supreme Court". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
^ "David Wecht to seek state Supreme Court vacancy". Pittsburgh Tribune-Review. December 4, 2014. Retrieved November 4, 2015.
^ ^a ^b Palmer, Chris (November 3, 2015). "Dougherty, Dems, sweep historic Supreme Court race". The Philadelphia Inquirer. Retrieved November 4, 2015.