Litigation

House Resolution Would Condemn Judge Walker

By Peter Hardin

The latest attack against federal Judge Vaughn R. Walker (photo at right) comes in a symbolic resolution inviting members of the House of Representatives to condemn the jurist.

The resolution by Rep. Lamar Smith, R-Texas, follows Judge Walker’s ruling that declared the voter-approved Proposition 8 ban on same-sex marriages unconstitutional (see Gavel Grab). Smith’s resolution states:

“(1) Chief United States District Judge Vaughn R. Walker failed to conduct himself in an impartial manner before striking down California?s popularly enacted Proposition 8 and thereby redefined traditional marriage to include same-sex relationships; and (2) Chief United States District Judge Vaughn R. Walker?s decision to strike down California?s popularly enacted Proposition 8 is wrong and should be appealed.”

But the issue has not snagged the attention of the House Republican leadership, according to an article in Politico. The Family Research Council, meanwhile, praised Smith’s resolution in a press statement.

Judge Walker’s ruling also has been hailed as a landmark advance for civil rights; it is likely to be appealed to the U.S. Supreme Court.

In a Slate article, Emily Bazelon wrote that both Judges Walker and Susan Bolton, who blocked key parts of Arizona’s immigration law from taking effect, have been criticized as “activist” judges.

“But at the district court level?the first floor of the federal system?sometimes activist is what judges are called on to be,” she asserted. “The framers laid the foundation for this by creating the judiciary as separate but equal.”

Full post as published by The Gavel on August 10, 2010 (boomark / email).