3rd Court sticks to bizarre logic

[sonias]

AAS Editorial 3/20/09
EDITORIAL: 3rd Court sticks to bizarre logic
3rd Court of Appeals refused to reconsider its ruling that money laundering was once OK as long as it done by check, not cash. The decision is tainted by politics.

The 3rd Court of Appeals, split 3-2 along partisan lines, has refused to reconsider its ruling last year that, at least until 2005, it was OK to take otherwise illegal corporate campaign contributions as long as the money came in the form of a check, not cash. The court thus reaffirmed a decision tainted by politics.
(snip)
But about $190,000 of that money, charged then-Travis Country District Attorney Ronnie Earle, a Democrat, was raised illegally from corporations. He brought charges against then-U.S. Rep. Tom DeLay and two associates, John Polyandry and Jim Ellis. Colyandro and Ellis challenged the constitutionality of the law under which the charges were brought.

(snip
"We remain persuaded that the Legislature chose not to include checks within the scope of the term 'funds' when defining money laundering in 1993 — a conclusion confirmed by the Legislature itself both in its limiting of the statute in 1993 and in its broadening of the statute in 2005."

So, Waldrop tells us, the Legislature in 1993 made it illegal to launder campaign cash — but chose to make it legal if you were clever enough to launder by check. Then, in 2005, he says, it rewrote the law to make money laundering by check illegal, too.

This is exactly why the courts matter. Waldrop is the kind of "activist judge" the right wingers complain about, but this one is one of theirs so he's OK in their book because he's protecting their bad guys.
:grr:

Sonia

[mbperrin]

1. Amazing.

Is alcohol or drug abuse that common amongst judges?

Evidence of my own eyes says yes....

[sonias]

2. In Texas?

I would agree with you. Drunk on power at the very least. I trust my lying eyes and ears more than what they say.

More from a related blog post

Grits for Breakfast blog post 3/8/09
Has the 3rd Court of Appeals found a solution to the liquidity crisis?

Speaking of Judge Diane Henson and the Third Texas Court of Appeals, she spoke up recently to criticize her colleagues' decision in the Tom DeLay money laundering case - a ruling that's an almost caricatured, extremist example of appellate judges identifying the outcome they want, then crafting a contorted opinion to get that result.

In order to exonerate defendants in the Tom DeLay money laundering case, a three-judge panel (all Republicans, Henson is a Democrat) came to the conclusion that "money laundering" under Texas' law does not include transactions involving checks! I can't imagine that standard applied to any other type of money laundering, can you?

Sonia

[efhmc]

3. Names of those judges and how can they be contacted and who

is up for reelection, please.

[sonias]

4. Don't know their re-election dates

But this is the list
Third Court of Appeals Justices

The 3 Rs on the court are:
Justice David Puryear - Place 5
Justice Bob Pemberton - Place 6
Justice Alan Waldrop - Place 2

Woodie Jones won a seat, the Chief Justice seat, on the Court in Nov 2008, so now the court is a 3-3 makeup. He beat incumbent Chief Justice Ken Law who was an R.
The Ds are
Diane Henson
Jan Patterson
Woodie Jones

Sonia

[efhmc]

5. Met, hopefully, the Dem's next member tonight.

Kurt Kuhn. He seems like another great candidate. Woodie, Jan and Dean all campaigned hard here and all are excellent. Hope is rampant.