Hearing Set Thursday For Judge

A show cause hearing wül be held in Washtenaw County Circuit Court at 10:30 a.m. Thursday to determine whether 15th District Judge S. J. Elden should be required to limit his political advertising for election to the Circuit Court. Circuit Judge William F. Ager Jr. signed the show cause order Friday after local attorney Arthur Carpenter had the day before filed suit against Elden, alleging that the judge and candidate has violated one of the Judicial Canons of Ethics in his election campaign. Carpenter objected to paid advertisements in The Ann Arbor News and on billboards around the countv which he claims link the promotion of Elden's candidacy to his controversial ruling of Sept. 29 that the Ann Arbor marijuana ordinance is unconstitutional. Canon 30, cited by Carpenter in the suit, states that a candidate for judicial office "should refrain from all conduct which might tend to arouse reasonable suspicion that he is using the power or prestige of his judicial position to pronote his candidacy . . ." The attorney contends that certain ads employed in Elden's campaign, such as the one which appeared in The News on Oct. 13 and stated "Some of Judge Sandy Elden's most courageöus decisions have come back to his doorstep," arouse such suspicion. That particular ad pictured a door to Elden's home on which had been painted - "by either misguided pranksters or sly supporters," according to the suit - some marijuana leaves. The vandalism occurred within the week following the anti-pot law ruling. Carpenter hopes to convince Judge Ager during next week's hearing to issue an injunction prohibiting Elden or his campaign aid, attorney Donald Kenney, from utilizing such types of advertising for the duration of the election campaign.