The Pennslvania Supreme Court, in a 4-0 vote (Chief Justice Castille and Justice McCaffery did not participate) has ordered Municipal Court Judge Deborah Griffin to be removed from the bench.  The order resolves a long ordeal involving multiple actions arising out of a conviction predating Griffin's attendance of law school and election to the Municipal Court.  The initial action, brought by the Judicial Condut Board was dismissed because of jurisdictional issues. 
Following the 2007 elections in which Griffin was retained for a second term on the bench, the Philadelphia District Attorney's office and the Pennsylvania Attorney General's office brought an action seeking to have her disqualified from public office.  The basis for the action was a provision of the state constitution barring anyone who was convicted of an "infamous crime" of holding public office.  Arguments focused on whether the conviction constituted an "infamous crime." Click here to read the Philadelphia Daily News' coverage and here for an editorial in which the Philadelphia Inquirer argues that the case demonstrates the problems inherent in using elections to select judges.