Kansas Republicans May Have Just Shut Down the State's Court System

[Contrary1]

Morons.

"What happens to a legal appeal when there's no court to hear it?

That's the tricky question before Kansas Republicans today as they grapple with the results of their own law, which threatens to shutter the state court system.

On Wednesday night, a district judge in Kansas struck down a 2014 law that stripped the state Supreme Court of some of its administrative powers. The ruling has set off a bizarre constitutional power struggle between the Republican-controlled legislature and the state Supreme Court. At stake is whether or not the Kansas court system itself will lose its funding and shut down.

Last year, the Kansas legislature passed a law that took away the top court's authority to appoint chief judges to the state's 31 judicial districts—a policy change Democrats believe was retribution for an ongoing dispute over school funding between the Supreme Court and the legislature. (Mother Jones reported on the standoff this spring.) When the legislature passed a two-year budget for the court system earlier this year, it inserted a clause stipulating that if a court ever struck down the 2014 administrative powers law, funding for the entire court system would be "null and void." Last night, that's what the judge did.

Kansas Attorney General Derek Schmidt warned that last night's decision “could effectively and immediately shut off all funding for the judicial branch.” That would lead to chaos. As Pedro Irigonegaray, an attorney for the Kansas judge who brought the legal challenge against the administrative law, put it: “Without funding, our state courts would close, criminal cases would not be prosecuted, civil matters would be put on hold, real estate could not be bought or sold, adoptions could not be completed."

More:http://www.motherjones.com/mojo/2015/09/why-entire-kansas-court-system-could-shut-down

[hifiguy]

1. The last person leaving KansASS can turn out the lights.

Republicanism was applied; the patient is dead, Jim.

[Demeter]

2. As far as I can tell, nobody was using it properly, anyway

[Sherman A1]

3. Hmmmmm

might be some unintended consequences there......

[Lindsay]

5. Republicans seem particularly inept

at anticipating consequences of their actions.

[haele]

4. I'm sorry for Kansas.

But it's like dealing with drunks in denial - the longer Wingnuts and Randriods are allowed to be in denial about the reality of governing, the harder it is for everyone when Adults have to pull the curtains off their "personal reality" and fix the problems they created.

I really do feel sorry for Kansas. We lived there over the summer when Dad took an adjunct transfer gig at UK in Lawrence. Nice place for a six-year old.

Haele

[Politicalboi]

6. Drown the baby and

Drink the bath water. This is freedom from government don't cha know.

This is what they voted for. Can gun licenses be handed out? Oh lordy what will they do??????

[Xipe Totec]

7. Remarkable parallels with this story:

Man Trying To Prove Gun Won't Fire Shoots Self In Head

OVERGAARD, Ariz. (AP) -- A 23-year-old Phoenix man is in critical condition after shooting himself in the head while trying to show that a handgun could not be fired while he had the safety mechanism engaged.


http://www.democraticunderground.com/10141197432

[hatrack]

8. How's that working out for you, Christian Soldiers?

Have fun!

[Angry Dragon]

9. We are not in Kansas anymore

[KamaAina]

10. What's the matter with Kansas?

Crap like this.