Sohail Mohammed
Gov. Christie doesn't appear at many swearings-in of judges but he was there when the first Indian-American and second Muslim became a state Superior Court judge. Sohail Mohammed was first named by Gov. Corzine but opposition from conservative bloggers and other politics got in the way. The wrap was he would seek to enforce Sharia law rather than the constitution. Gov. Christie wasn't buying it. "This guy's an American citizen who has been an admitted lawyer to practice in the state of New Jersey, swearing an oath to uphold the laws on New Jersey, the constitution of New Jersey and the Constitution of the United States.'' He went on, "This Sharia law business is crap. It's just crazy and I'm tired of dealing with the crazies. It's just unnecessary to be accusing this guy of things just because of his religious background.''
Mohammed because a citizen in the same courtroom where he became a judge. He also served on a jury there which led to his giving up an engineering career to become a lawyer.
In case there was any questions about his citizenship, Judge Mohammed said he brought along a copy of his papers. He has a sense of humor and said the criticism of him was just a part of the process.