Instapundit updates our Rave post yesterday with news that a Judge in Traverse City, Michigan is on leave after being observed smoking a joint at a Rolling Stones concert.

This is a good illustration of why, overwhelmingly, it is pro-prosecution, pro-law enforcement type lawyers who apply to be judges.

So many defense lawyers are loathe to put themselves under the glare of the public spotlight. This is not to say that all defense lawyers smoke or have smoked pot. Just that they are more likely to have lived a part of their life on the edge, and don't need the aggravation or humiliation of having it come to the public's attention.

It is beyond shameful that this country can't progress to a point where suitability for public office, including judgeships, is determined upon the basis of knowledge and skills, combined with a desire to contribute to the public good, rather than personal moral traits and actions that are so inconsequential in the grand scheme of things.