The 9th Circuit Court continues to goosestep its way through the US Constitution. (But there may be hope, kiddies.)

Court: false accusations against police are protected speech

A federal appeals court nullified a California criminal law adopted after the Rodney King beating that made it unlawful for citizens to knowingly lodge false accusations against police officers.

The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals said Thursday the law was an unconstitutional infringement of speech because false statements in support of officers were not criminalized. (WTF??? - F.G.) The decision, hailed by civil liberties groups and opposed by the California District Attorneys Association and law enforcement groups, overturns the California Supreme Court, which in 2002 ruled that free speech concerns took a back seat when it came to speech targeting police officers.


Here's the ray of hope. If you can't impeach 'em, dilute their power.

GOP move to advance 9th Circuit split draws heat from Democrats

House Republicans on Thursday included a break-up of the San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in a budget bill that would be immune from Senate filibuster, drawing complaints from Democrats.

"It does not have the support to pass both houses of Congress, so House Republicans are seeking to stifle debate and the democratic process by inserting a controversial measure into the expedited budget process," said House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-San Francisco.

She's just jealous because she's not clever enough to think up something like that.

The House Budget Committee included the measure in a $54 billion deficit-reduction bill that is expected to get a House floor vote next week.
The measure would create a 9th Circuit covering California, Hawaii and the Pacific Islands, and a new 12th Circuit covering Alaska, Washington, Oregon, Idaho, Montana, Nevada and Arizona.

Supporters say the 9th Circuit, which covers nine states with about 54 million people, is too large to operate effectively. But opponents allege politics by Republicans angry at some of the court's rulings, like the 2002 opinion that declared the Pledge of Allegiance unconstitutional when recited in public schools.

Republicans have been trying for years to break up the 9th Circuit. They've tried unsuccessfully in the past to get the measure through Congress attached to budget bills full of other provisions lawmakers want to support.

The full Senate passed its own version of the deficit reduction bill on Thursday without the 9th Circuit split. If the breakup makes it through the House, congressional negotiators would have to work out whether to include it in the final bill the House and Senate would vote on.

Sen. Dianne Feinstein, D-Calif., said Thursday that if the circuit split measure comes to the Senate floor she'll block it with a technical objection against allowing non-budgetary provisions in budget bills.