This corndog has done nothing wrong
State Prosecuting Attorney Lisa McMinn on Friday asked the state’s highest criminal court to reverse the decision by the Austin-based 3rd Court of Appeals, which tossed out the charge that Perry coerced a public servant when he tried to force Travis County District Attorney Rosemary Lehmberg out of office. The state’s involvement ratchets up scrutiny of the ruling, the first major breakthrough in the more than yearlong case for Perry, a Republican who is now running for president.
McMinn’s appeal also puts her in the company of Perry’s legal team, which has its own challenge pending before the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. Recognizing the potential for an “unnecessary, significant expenditure of resources,” special prosecutor Michael McCrum on Monday requested a hold on all trial court proceedings while the case plays out at the Court of Criminal Appeals.
McMinn was expected to file her appeal, saying earlier this month that the state had an interest in the ruling because the 3rd Court of Appeals struck as unconstitutional a part of the Texas penal code that defines coercion.
In a filing with the Court of Criminal Appeals that became available Monday, McMinn argued the 3rd Court of Appeals “erroneously blended two different First Amendment doctrines” when it tackled the coercion issue. McMinn also suggested the court failed to take into account all the potential consequences of declaring the statute unconstitutional.
See here and here for the background. I have no idea what the CCA will do, and I have no idea how long it will take them to do it. I’ll just say that I’ll be surprised if Rick Perry’s fate in the Presidential race isn’t determined by the time they come to a decision.
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