Supreme Court brawl over pay freeze?

Give new Supreme Court Chief Justice Jim Hardesty credit. Besides being a top judge and good legal mind, he tried to do the right thing earlier this month when he called all of the supremes behind closed doors and suggested that they not take a pay increase in light of the severe budget crunch facing the state.

Hardesty said the vote had to be unanimous otherwise he would not proceed. Two justices voted against the voluntary pay freeze idea, which is fine. But what allegedly happened next is worrisome. According to my source, one of the justices became so enraged that he verbally assaulted (and darn near physically threatened) Hardesty for daring to tinker with his pay increase.

The outburst stunned all.

That's the story I'm hearing. I'm not going to say my source is dead-on impeccable on this, but I will say I believe my source to be reliable enough to pass the story along. If anyone has more on this, I'm listening because it sounds like one of our Supreme Court justices is one taco short of a combination plate and on the verge of an emotional breakdown. You can reach me (in confidence, if you need it) at sherm@lvrj.com.