McCaffery’s resume
says it all

By Tom Waring
Times Staff Writer

Judge Seamus McCaffery has a well-known name across the state, especially in Philadelphia, but he thinks there are numerous reasons to vote for him on Tuesday.
McCaffery, of Bustleton’s Pine Valley section, is a native of Northern Ireland who joined the Philadelphia Police Department after graduating from Cardinal Dougherty High School. He attended night school to earn a law degree from Temple University.
After five years in private practice, he was elected to Philadelphia Municipal Court, where he served as administrative judge. Ten years later, he was elected to the state Superior Court. Along the way, he’s had a long military career, now serving as a colonel in the Air Force Reserve.
"It gets no better than that," he said.
Now, McCaffery is seeking a seat on Pennsylvania Supreme Court. He believes that, among the four Democrats and three Republicans on the ballot, his administrative and appellate experience make him the best choice.
"If you take away the names and look at the bios, who do you think has the better depth and breadth of experience?" he asks voters on the campaign trail.
McCaffery, 56, hopes that the voters recognize his experience when they go the polls. He is one of four Democrats seeking two nominations. The others are Superior Court Judge Debra Todd and Philadelphia Common Pleas Court Judges Darnell Jones, of Oak Lane, and Willis Berry, of North Philadelphia.
The Democratic State Committee has endorsed McCaffery and Todd. The Pennsylvania Bar Association Judicial Evaluation Commission has rated McCaffery "recommended." The Philadelphia Inquirer had kind words for him, but it is backing Todd and Jones.
McCaffery, who’ll be listed second on the ballot behind Berry, has numerous endorsements from labor unions and law enforcement groups. They’ll contact members by phone to get them to the polls.
Some have described McCaffery as "Pennsylvania’s perfect Democrat" because of his crossover appeal to sportsmen, motorcycle riders and other traditional Republican voting blocs.
The seats are open because of the resignation of Justice Sandra Schultz Newman and the 2005 retention defeat of Justice Russell Nigro.
The campaign has taken McCaffery all across Pennsylvania. He plans to run television commercials in the southwest, northwest and northeast areas of the state.
Locally, he has a campaign office on Byberry Road and plans a victory party on Tuesday at Colleen’s on the Ben Franklin Parkway. Pat Croce, the popular former president of the 76ers, is backing him in radio commercials on Philadelphia stations.
McCaffery, a married father of three and grandfather of two, should benefit because turnout in Philadelphia is likely to be extremely high due to the hotly contested Democratic mayoral primary.
On Superior Court, McCaffery is one of just two Philadelphians. Republican Dick Klein is the other.
Of the five elected members of the seven-member Supreme Court — not including two appointees who will leave at the end of the year — only Ron Castille, a former Philadelphia district attorney, lives east of Harrisburg.
"The imbalance of the court is just incredible," McCaffery said.
As a Municipal Court judge, McCaffery was best known for presiding over nuisance night courts and at Eagles games at Veterans Stadium.
The publicity led to proposed television deals, but the judge rejected them.
"My whole life has been public service," he said. "I have thirty-nine years in the criminal justice system of Pennsylvania."
In his four years on Superior Court, he’s written 100-plus opinions. He’s also sat on panels where he’s learned to build consensus and engage in dialogue with colleagues.
McCaffery likes his job on Superior Court but thinks he can do more on a higher court.
"The next step in the pyramid of the judiciary is Supreme Court," he said. ••
Reporter Tom Waring can be reached at 215-354-3034 or twaring@phillynews.com