“Madame Justice” Rachel Lea Hunter is seeking to unseat N.C. Supreme Court Justice Mark D. Martin.

Although Hunter may be one of the least-qualified candidates for state judicial office, she is without doubt the most colorful. She requested that her nickname, “Madame Justice,” be listed on the ballot. The state Board of Elections denied the request on the grounds that the label would mislead voters, since Hunter has never been a judge.

Hunter was an unsuccessful candidate for Supreme Court in 2004. At that time she was a registered Republican, but was not supported by the state Republican Party. She subsequently switched her registration to Democrat.

According to the Raleigh News and Observer, Hunter “has been disowned by state Democrat Party leaders for describing a black Republican candidate [Vernon Robinson] as a slave, and rebuked by former basketball coach Dean Smith for claiming he endorsed her”.Hunter may have learned from the Smith incident. Her web site displays pictures of her with Rep. Walter Jones and other members of Congress, but she does not claim that they endorse her.

In a statement on her web site, Hunter disclosed that, last year, she had a non-malignant brain tumor removed. She took pains to assure voters that the surgery had not affected her mental ability.

Hunter takes the liberal/leftist position on many issues. Some stances, such as her support for “anti-war” militant Cindy Sheehan, have nothing do with the job of a state Supreme Court justice. But Hunter is not always predictable. Now and then she shows a libertarian side.

“Madame Justice” is clearly hostile to social conservatives. In a recent e-mail she said: “...the mentality of the religious Christian right, as demonstrated by the Christian Coalition, is like the mentality displayed by the Taliban who want to impose their own brand of theocracy on the government. The religions are different but the mindset is the same.”

Hunter’s husband, Connie Mack Berry, Jr., plays an active role in her campaign. In 1997 Berry was convicted of bilking 27 customers of his jewelry business out of $285,000, by taking gold and silver he never paid for. He was sentenced to 30 months in prison and seven years probation.

He previously served prison time for a money order scam and for replacing a customer’s diamond with a fake stone. In 1983 he plead no contest to swindling 37 customers out of $75,000, by failing to pay for precious metals.

This background may explain why a frequent subject of Hunter’s voluminous public statements is the need to uphold the rights of criminal defendants.