A majority of Texas lawyers say they support Democratic Austin criminal defense attorney Keith Hampton in his bid to oust Court of Criminal Appeals Presiding Judge Sharon Keller at the polls this November.
Of the nearly 9,300 lawyers participating in the State Bar of Texas poll, 52% favor Hampton in his race against Keller, who has been on the CCA, the state’s highest criminal court, since 1994. She’s been the presiding judge since 2000.
Keller is the only judge on the court up for re-election who has drawn an opponent.
Keller has faced much scrutiny since 2007, when the court failed to consider the last-minute death appeal of Michael Richard. You can find the details on that controversy here.
The results of the Bar poll are here.
This article appears in May 11 • 2012.