NOVEMBER 3, 2020
Today, a California Superior Court ruled in favor of me and fellow legislator James Gallagher in our lawsuit challenging Gavin Newsom’s abuse of power. You can read the ruling here.
The Judge ruled that Governor Newsom violated the State Constitution by issuing Executive Order N-67-20. More importantly, she found good cause for a permanent injunction restraining the Governor from issuing any further unconstitutional orders:
The Court rejected Newsom’s extraordinary claim that a State of Emergency turns California into an autocracy and “centralizes the state’s powers in the hands of the Governor.” This is the unlawful basis on which Newsom has collapsed California’s system of checks and balances, issuing 57 Executive Orders and changing over 400 laws unilaterally.
*Update: On May 5, the Third District Court of Appeal agreed with me and James on almost every legal issue, yet found a way to reverse the decision. This was not a surprise: this particular court was always the Governor’s preferred forum, and we are immediately appealing.
As Phil Willon of the LA Times wrote, “I expect this case to wind up at the California Supreme Court. If so it would be one of the biggest checks on the California governor’s executive authority in times of state emergencies.”