Judge Tells Senators To Get Back Into Chamber
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- June
- 29
A state Supreme Court judge ruled this afternoon that all 62 state senators must convene session together tomorrow, calling the separate sessions held by the warring sides “fiction” that violates state law.
The action by Justice Joseph Teresi is the first definitive steps by the courts to intervene in the three-week leadership fight that has paralyzed the Senate since June 8. He ordered all senators to the Senate chambers tomorrow at 10 a.m.
“To convene into session as separate groups is fiction,” he told lawyers for Senate Democrats and Republicans.
Lawyers for Senate Republicans said they will appeal and seek a stay that would prevent session from being held, arguing that the judicial branch doesn’t the legal right to interfere in legislative business.
Gov. David Paterson has been using his constitutional power since last Tuesday to order the Senate to hold special sessions each day in hopes of breaking the gridlock. But the 31-31 deadlocked Senate has simply entered the chamber separately each day and gaveled in and out without taking any action.
Teresi ruled that the constitution compels the Senate to be in the chambers together.
Paterson, however, doesn’t have the power to require them to take any action once they convene.
So the ruling may bring them all into the chamber, but they could all simply gavel in and out, Paterson’s attorneys conceded.
This entry was posted
on Monday, June 29th, 2009 at 5:13 pm by Joseph Spector.
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