Constitutional challenges, especially over the last year, have been highly politically charged in North Carolina and the three-judge panels appointed to hear those cases wield a lot of power with little transparency as to how they got it.
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As lawmakers prepare to vote later this week on measures that are a secret to the rest of North Carolina, there is fear in some circles judicial reform could be put back on the table. House, Senate and joint committees have been talking about judicial redistricting and judicial selection for months without agreement between the two chambers.
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North Carolina’s redistricting plans have drawn major court involvement over the last few years, and it’s not looking promising that trend will change in 2018. There are five pending redistricting cases, four of which have had some action in the past month and it’s not easy to keep them straight.
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Nothing is off the table when it comes to Republican judicial reform, and a former Wake County judge thinks court packing may still be an option. Donald Stephens has been using his newfound retirement to speak out against changes to the judiciary that could result in less independence for the coequal branch of government.
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There’s a new rumor afoot about judicial reform that lawmakers may try to pass a judicial appointment system that only affects district court judges. The plan is apparently premised on the notion that the state constitution allows such action without voter consent. The Senate has been floating “merit” selection for the better part of half a year and evaluating different forms of judicial reform since the latter part of last year. House Republicans prefer judicial redistricting.
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The best defense is a good offense, and lawmakers are trying that strategy in federal court.
Their attorneys spent Friday attacking the job of special master Nathaniel Persily, who was tasked by a federal court with redrawing several legislative districts to correct unconstitutional racial gerrymanders.
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New Year, new … wait a minute. It’s looking more like this year’s legislative motto will be “New Year, same me.”
It’s fully expected that lawmakers will continue building on many of the same themes North Carolinians saw in 2017, starting with their continued vice grip on the courts. Though it’s possible their fingers may be pried open by several court decisions expected in the first half of the year.
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Determining this year’s biggest justice news is like tip-toeing through a minefield without detonating a bomb.
Republican lawmakers went all in on the state’s judiciary – they worked hard to pass laws that cater to their needs and they worked even harder to make sure judges think twice before overturning those laws.
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While North Carolinians inch further from the death penalty, Republican legislative leaders are forward marching toward execution.
The state hasn’t put anyone to death since 2006 because of pending litigation over numerous legal issues – including lethal injection practices and racial bias at trials...
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If the General Assembly were an army, their troops would be spread too thin. Lawmakers made a tactical decision this year to redraw judicial district boundaries. On another battle front, they’re trying to correct several previous mapmaking mistakes: Unconstitutional legislative and congressional redistricting, the latter of which they’re still disputing in court.
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