SUIT AGAINST JUDGE MAKES LUDICROUS CLAIMS

It is a bizarre story that typifies many of the problems of our legal system. A Cape Girardeau judge has been named in a $25 million federal lawsuit brought by a candidate for Congress who charges that the judge is part of a criminal conspiracy to obstruct justice and deprive him of his civil rights. Finding himself in the unaccustomed role of defendant is 32nd Judicial Circuit Judge William L. Syler. The man bringing suit is computer programmer Marc Perkel of Springfield, who is the de facto Democratic congressional nominee for Missouri's 7th District. Perkel says his candidacy stems from what he considers a corrupt judicial system full of crooked lawyers and judges.

Such populist rhetoric will no-doubt resonate with some who have legitimate grievances and frustrations with our imperfect legal system. Whether it will propel Perkel to victory in the Southwest Missouri congressional district, which hasn't elected a Democrat in many decades, is doubtful.

Legitimate criticisms of Judge Syler could be leveled, as they could against any public figure. Anyone who knows Bill Syler, though, will laugh at the notion that he would be part of a criminal conspiracy to deprive a litigant of his rights. Perkel's beef seems to be that he wants to represent himself in court cases, and that Syler and the other judge-defendants are thwarting his chosen means. A litigant's right to represent himself -- pro se, as the law calls it -- isn't absolute. It can't be, or the courts would bog down with cranks and frauds wasting everyone's time and resources. We are confident that when Perkel's suit gets its hearing, it will be forthwith dismissed.