Arlen Specter: “Further, Judge Southwick has voted in favor of the so-called underdogs. The suggestion that he is biased against women…”

“Further, Judge Southwick has voted in favor of the so-called underdogs. The suggestion that he is biased against women and homosexuals is contradicted by a number of cases: Curtis v. Curtis, Kmart Corp. v. Lee, Hughey v. State of Mississippi. In Curtis v. Curtis, Judge Southwick wrote for a divided court and upheld the trial court's grant of divorce in favor of the wife on the grounds of adultery. The dissent would have reversed and remanded. In Kmart Corp. v. Lee, Judge Southwick wrote an opinion upholding the lower court's decision to award $500,000 to a woman who slipped on antifreeze in a Kmart. Judge Southwick sympathized with the woman, stating: "Before the fall, Lee was a hard working, independent woman who was able to take care of many problems at the apartment complex she managed herself. . . . now she is unable to work a full day . . ." In Hughey v. State of Mississippi, Judge Southwick affirmed the trial court's decision to disallow cross-examination as to the victim's sexual preference. He recognized that whether the victim was homosexual was not relevant to the defense and that such a line of inquiry would produce undue prejudice.”