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Movement on Chicago gun case
Plaintiffs have filed a motion for summary judgment (pdf). As they're subject to a page limit of 15 pages, it can't be a treatise. But the critical points are made, and the style excellent. A person without a legal background can read and reasonably well understand it, which for a technical issue like 14th amendment incorporation, is hard to do.
On the side, they're giving the city flak about its answer to the complaint.
UPDATE: the odds of winning in the District Court are about zero, and appellate court not high. As I see it, the only likely win is in the Supreme Court, should it take the case. The trial court (even if not part of the Daley Machine) is going to answer "maybe you're right, but the Circuit Court of Appeals has said it's not incorporated against the States, and I can't overrule the Circuit." The Circuit would *probably* respond "maybe you're right, but (1) we've held previously that it wasn't incorporated and (2) a century ago the Supreme Court did the same (albeit under the earlier "privileges or immunities" approach only), and we can't overrule the Supreme Court." Then you go to the Supremes and see if they'll decide the issue.
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Very well written motion!
I am shocked, shocked to find that the City of Chicago is behaving disingenuously. Next thing you know city government will be known as a hotbed of cronyism and corruption!
The facts of the case, the state of jurisprudence at this time and non-response of the Defendant would seem to leave the court no choice but to rule for the Plaintiffs and incorporation.
I can't wait to see how they manage to avoid such, but I am confident they will find a way.
For the non-lawyers, the Plaintiffs' motion to strike is bascially lawyerspeak for:
a) the City's attorneys are either too lazy to go examine the City's own records, or b) the City's records are so incompetently organized that the City's attorneys couldn't find the records, in order to adequately respond.
What are the odds the Judge is on the Daly machine's payroll? Or has Chicago changed all that much since the 60's?
No one can say for certainty ...
But my several reads of the Heller opinion lead me to believe that they (the Heller majority and at this time) are ready for an incorporation case. In fact, a few phrases made me suspect that they "eagerly" await such a case.
Letalis, actually I would translate the motion to strike as this:
Plaintiff: Don't screw with us - we aren't putting up with it.
I suspect that the likelihood of a successful summary judgment in favor of plaintiffs is low, however well argued, when incorporation of the 2nd Amendment vs. the states is at issue. I'd be happy for this occurrence, but the matter is important and the legal facts are such that the historical inconsistencies between Slaughter House and current 14th Amendment jurisprudence are large. That said, the motion to strike gave the City of Chicago quite a spanking. Eight separate instances where "the City simply decided not to look them [the relevant records] up. That is not grounds for claiming ignorance, and it was disingenuous of the Defendants to so claim." Whew.