Republicans accuse Northam of trying to pack Virginia courts

Republican lawmakers are accusing Gov. Ralph Northam of trying to pack the courts with soft-on-crime judges after he proposed a budget amendment to fund four additional judges for the Virginia Court of Appeals.

Northam’s proposal came after he signed several bills to reform the criminal justice system. Northam said funding additional judges and support staff will “ensure the court can hear more appeals cases in a timely manner under an increasing workload” in an address to lawmakers Wednesday.