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Friday, October 28, 2005

Ind. Courts - Randolph County Courthouse group hires lawyer; and a thought

The Winchester News-Gazette today has a story by Cynthia Aukerman headlined "Save Our Courthouse hires lawyer." Some quotes:

The Save our Courthouse Committee has retained Gregory F. Hahn, a partner in the Indianapolis law firm of Tabbert, Hahn, Earnest and Weddle, to pursue legal means to protect the Randolph County Courthouse from demolition.

Save Our Courthouse spokesman Larry Francer said the group believes county commissioners must fulfill the special legislation that was granted by the state legislature to renovate the courthouse.

That legislation established a special tax for courthouse renovation, a tax that has been collected from county taxpayers for several years.

Francer said, "We would rather spend our money on the courthouse itself rather than on legal fees. However, if the commissioners don't rescind the demolition vote, we are willing to spend our money to force them to abide by the law passed to benefit the courthouse."

In addition, the story documents that Save Our Courthouse "has worked closely with Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana" and has "brought in a series of experts to speak to commissioners about the economic value of preservation and the soundness of the building."

A Thought. The ILB has posted a number of entries about the endangered Randolph County Courthouse. But nowhere have I seen mention of the positions of the Randolph County Circuit and Superior Court judges on the matter of the demolition of the Courthouse and the moving of the courts and other governmental functions to a Walmart or other available space, as the County Commissioners have proposed.

"Separation of Powers in the County Courthouse," an article of mine published in the September issue of Res Gestae (and also available here), looks at the use of the judicial mandate in Indiana.

Our Supreme Court has held consistently that the use of the judicial mandate is not limited to disputes about funds. And it has ruled that "The 'courthouse,' as the term implies, is chiefly for the use of the court, the remaining uses being subordinate, and to a great extent, incidental."

My article points out that "only two cases had been located where the Supreme Court [has] totally rejected a mandate, one directed that the location of the courthouse be changed, and the other, that the courthouse be razed."

Surely then, one or more of the Randolph County judges, who possess the power of the judicial mandate, may wield it, if they so chose, to protect the historic Randolph County Courthouse from demolition.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on October 28, 2005 05:59 PM
Posted to Indiana Courts