Editorial: Respect law, not partisanship, must be state Supreme Court majority's guide
Thursday, Dec. 7, 2023 -- If the current N.C. high court, regardless of those justices who end up considering the latest Leandro appeal, respect the State Constitution and the rights of children; if they respect the doctrine of stare decisis, they will continue to require the implementation of the remedial plan to assure a sound basic education everywhere in the state. North Carolina will be better for it.
Posted — UpdatedWhen the North Carolina Supreme Court gets around, again, to determining the rights of the state’s children, the majority of justices will be guided by politics and power not the state Constitution, the law or the access for all to a quality education.
Amid the side issues have been motions to have two of the justices recuse themselves from participating in the case. Legislative leaders want Earls removed while, following that request, the original plaintiffs in the matter asked for Justice Phil Berger Jr.’s recusal “because Justice Berger’s father is the appellant in this case.”
When, just last year, the high court affirmed a lower court order directing the legislature to provide the funding to implement a remedial program the plaintiffs and defendants in the initial case agreed on. It is critical here to understand that the court wasn’t simply ordering the legislature to spend money – it was directing that a specific program – a court settlement – be implemented. It is the legislature’s DUTY to provide the resources.
If the current high court, regardless of those justices who end up considering the case, respect the State Constitution and its clear mandate on the rights of children; if they respect the doctrine of stare decisis (respect for previous rulings) they will continue to require the implementation of the remedial plan to assure a sound basic education everywhere in the state.
North Carolina will be better for it.
If politics and power are more important, it will be to the tragic diminishment of the state’s kids, the future of the state and the status of the courts as a separate and equal branch of government.
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