Courts & Law

SCOTUS stays marriage equality in Virginia

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EqualJust as I expected, the U.S. Supreme Court granted a request for stay of the 4th Circuit Court of Appeals decision striking down Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage.What makes this situation different from the stay granted in the appeal from the state of Utah is that the request did not come from the state of  Virginia, but from a county clerk in Prince William County.

Amy Howe at SCOTUSblog.com reports, Court blocks Virginia same-sex marriage ruling:

Just as it did when a federal trial judge in Utah struck down that state’s ban on same-sex marriage, this afternoon the Supreme Court put on hold a ruling by the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, which had held that Virginia’s ban on same-sex marriage is unconstitutional.

Michele McQuigg, the county clerk for Prince William County, Virginia, had asked the Court to step in to stay the Fourth Circuit’s decision, which otherwise would have gone into effect tomorrow.  The application for a stay went to Chief Justice John Roberts, who handles such requests from the geographic area that includes Virginia.  Roberts then referred the application to the full Court; there were no recorded dissents from today’s order.

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UPDATE: Guatemalan Children Get Six-Month Reprieve on Deportation

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Yesterday, I juxtaposed three immigration stories in my post— the sad news about the murder of 5-10 Honduran refugee children that the US deported recently, the plight of a young Guatemalan mother and her three children who crossed the border alone and are facing deportation, and the callous reaction to the child refugee crisis by … Read more

Stick a fork in him, Tom ‘banned for life by the SEC’ Horne is done

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TomHorneArizona Attorney General Tom “banned for life by the SEC” Horne likes to claim how effective he is as an attorney. And yet  . . .

Last week “Maricopa County Superior Court Judge Mark Brain rejected Arizona Attorney General Tom Horne’s bid for a temporary restraining order against County Attorney Bill Montgomery, whose office is investigating, among other things, allegations that Horne has used his state office to campaign for re-election.” Tom Horne’s Bid for Temporary Restraining Order Against Against Bill Montgomery Rejected by Judge.

This week, “A Maricopa County judge denied Attorney General Tom Horne’s request to bar the Citizens Clean Elections Commission from investigating a campaign finance complaint against him.” Judge denies Horne injunction against Clean Elections:

Judge Dawn Bergin rejected Horne’s argument that the commission lacks authority over candidates who don’t participate in the Clean Elections system. Furthermore, Bergin said a 2014 law that sought to prohibit the commission from investigating privately funded candidates doesn’t apply to the case.

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Tucson scores another direct hit on the ‘Kochtopus’ Death Star

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In 2012, Rep. Michelle Ugenti (R-Scottsdale), a storm trooper for the “Kochtopus” Death Star, the Goldwater Institute, sponsored HB 2826 (consolidated election dates; political subdivisions), a bill providing for the consolidation of elections in the fall of even numbered years only. The law will apply to elections in 2014 and thereafter.

StarWarsLast August, Judge James E. Marner of the Pima County Superior Court entered his ruling after trial of this matter to the court in City of Tucson v. State of Arizona et al. (Case No. C20126272). Judge Marner ruled in favor of the Charter Cities of Tucson and Phoenix, and against the Arizona legislature. The 10 page ruling is Here.

Fast-forward to this week when the Arizona Court of Appeals ruled unanimously in favor of the Charter City rebels, led by Tucson and Phoenix. The Arizona Capitol Times (subscription required) reports, Appeals court frees Arizona cities to hold elections when they want:

Phoenix, Tucson and the state’s 17 other charter cities can have their local elections pretty much when they want, no matter what state legislators say, the Arizona Court of Appeals has ruled.

Read the Court of Appeals ruling Here (.pdf).

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Disgraceful: Some Deported Refugee Children Already Dead

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Young Guatamalan children who were reunited with their mother in Cincinnati could face deportation. (Photo: The Enquirer)
Young Guatemalan children, who were reunited with their mother in Cincinnati, could face deportation. How can we sentence them to death? (Photo: The Enquirer)

Thousands of refugee children have been fleeing violence and poverty in Central America for almost a year now. Until all Hell broke loose in Ferguson, Missouri last week, the refugee children had the national limelight. (We are on to the next shiny thing.)

Two heart-wrenching stories about the refugee children were released today. First, Think Progress released a story stating that 5-10 of the recently deported children have already been murdered.

Second, the Cincinnati Enquirer reported that group of four young cousins would be facing an immigration judge in Cleveland today and could likely deported– despite having been reunited with family members in the US (pictured above).

Look at the faces of these children. How can we send them back to gang violence and death? Have we become a country of greedy, self-centered bigots? Probably, yes.

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