In a move that may anger some conservatives but will please black supporters, Gov. Charlie Crist has named Circuit Judge James Perry of Sanford to the Florida Supreme Court.
Conservatives including the National Rifle Association and the Florida Family Policy Council had advocated 5th Circuit Court of Appeals Judge Al Lawson receive the appointment, saying Lawson was more qualified.
Perry, a North Carolina native and Columbia University Law School graduate, is a registered Democrat with a history of community involvement, and of occasional involvement in civil rights litigation. He will be the court's second black justice.
In a news conference a few minutes ago, Perry described his judicial philosophy as apolitical, and Crist said he made the appointment without regard to politics.
This was Crist's fourth Supreme Court appointment. Two of his previous appointees were white, and pleasing to conservatives; one was Hispanic. With no more justices scheduled to retire soon, this may have been the last chance for Crist to name a black justice.
Crist, who is is considering running for the U.S. Senate next year, has been politically successful in part because he has built levels of black voter support unprecedented for a Florida Republican governor.
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