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Wednesday, March 15, 2006

Ind. Gov't. - Two different approaches to courts v. legislature

In a column titled "Legislative Briefs" today, Louisville Courier Journal reporter Lesley Stedman Weidenbener quotes Sen. Richard Bray, R-Martinsville on the wine shipping bill:

Wineries have been shipping to customers for years, but the Indiana Alcohol and Tobacco Commission decided last year to end that practice, saying nothing in state law allowed it. Nine Hoosier wineries sued, and a Marion County judge issued a temporary injunction, permitting the shipments to continue while lawmakers debated the issue.

"If we had not handled this bill, the Indiana wine code probably would have been rewritten by some judge somewhere," said Sen. Richard Bray, R-Martinsville. "That's not the way it should be done."

This appears to be the opposite of Senate leader Robert Garton's oft-reported position during the session that the Senate would not act on subjects that were in litigation. See, for example, this quote (via the ILB) from the Feb. 24th Louisville Courier Journal:
Garton said the legislature doesn't interfere in court cases: "We are not the judicial branch of government." * * *

Senate Minority Leader Richard Young, D-Milltown, said Garton's decision is consistent with a long-standing chamber policy.

"Whenever he's known about situations involving lawsuits, that's what he's done," Young said.

Last week Garton also killed a bill that would have phased out fenced deer hunting after he learned that a suit had been filed to stop the state from shutting a Harrison County operation down in March.

Posted by Marcia Oddi on March 15, 2006 08:05 AM
Posted to Indiana Government