October 5, 2002
NIP IT IN THE BUD:
Calif: NJ ruling a bad election precedent (UPI, 10/5/2002)California's Secretary of State, Bill Jones -- a Republican -- has filed an amicus brief asking the Supreme Court to overturn the New Jersey court's decision to allow the Democratic Party of New Jersey to replace Sen. Robert Torricelli on the upcoming election's ballot. [...]"It worked once spectacularly, they will say. It can work again," the friend-of-the-court brief said.
Michigan, Florida, Washington and South Carolina are among other states "joining the bandwagon," Fox News Channel reported.
One would think that having a bunch of states asking for clarification would put pressure on the Court to take a case that they likely want no part of otherwise. Posted by Orrin Judd at October 5, 2002 6:47 AM
Much as I'd like to think enough amicus curiae
briefs (amici curiae
?) would do the trick, I'm tempted to think it won't make a hill-of-beans difference: The Circuit Courts, whose doctrinal splits it is the High Court's duty to bleeping resolve, have enough schisms to make Europe during the Thirty Years War look monolithic -- and still, the Supreme Court lets the rifts continue. In light of that, I doubt that concern from attorneys general about a different state's court ruling is gonna sway the Justices all that much.
Then again, I define "pessimist" as, "Someone who isn't surprised when things turn out the way they always do."