(BE)RAXING THE JUDGES

law The bad news: you’re bankrupt. The good news: you land in the court of U.S. Bankruptcy Judge STEVEN FELSENTHAL, the shining star of a recent Dallas Bar Association poll. More than a thousand lawyers were asked to rate 131 Dallas judges in five categories: is the judge hard-working? Impartial? Does he correctly apply the law? Does she demonstrate ’’proper judicial temperament and demeanor?” And do you approve of the judge’s overall performance?

Felsenthal’s lowest score came in applying the law, where “only” 95 percent of the barristers approved of his deci-sions. Most of his peers drew ratings in the 80s and high 70s, and even District Court Judge JACK HAMPTON, roundly criticized after his light sentence of a Mesquite man who killed a homosexual, stacked up numbers mostly in the 62-69 percent range.

And then there were the courthouse buffoons and mental low riders skewered over the years in D’s own “Rating the Judges” features. Longtime D’S readers will not be surprised to learn that County Criminal Court Judge Berlaind Bra-shear took a knee in the groin from the attorneys who ply their trade before him. Only 28 percent labeled Brashear hardworking, while just 32 percent thought he knew how to apply the law. Nor does the wisdom of Solomon live on in Visiting Judge SOLOMON CASSEB JR., who impressed a measly 39 percent of the respondents with his legal acumen and drew a lackluster 36 percent approval rating.

But the real potted plant of the courthouse seems to be 44th District Court Judge candace Tyson. Hard-working? Try 25 percent. Correctly applies the law? A grungy 20 percent. Just 30 percent of the judge’s judges thought she was of proper judicial temperament. Top it all with a dismal 23 percent approval rating, and you’re looking at a judge most Dallas attorneys wouldn’t mind sentencing to life without a gavel.