Posted on 12/15/2006 3:50:14 PM PST by calcowgirl
A group of Republican activists has revamped its lawsuit challenging outgoing Oakland Mayor Jerry Brown's eligibility to serve as state attorney general.
The amended complaint filed Wednesday in Sacramento County Superior Court seeks to prevent Brown, 68, from taking the office to which 56 percent of voters elected him Nov. 7.
While the original lawsuit, filed Oct. 19, named local voter registrars as defendants in an attempt to get Brown booted from the ballot, the new complaint names Secretary of State Bruce McPherson and state Controller Steve Westly in an attempt to keep them from spending any taxpayer money to certify, swear in or pay Brown.
Brown — who served two terms as California's governor and two terms as Oakland's mayor — remains a defendant as well; the plaintiffs want an injunction preventing him from taking an oath of office.
The lawsuit still hinges on California Government Code section 12503, which states, "No person shall be eligible to the office of Attorney General unless he shall have been admitted to practice before the Supreme Court of the state for a period of at least five years immediately preceding his election or appointment to such office."
Brown earned a degree from Yale Law School in 1964 and was admitted to the State Bar of California in June 1965 but was an "inactive member" from Jan. 1, 1997, through May 1, 2003, bar records show. "Inactive members have chosen this status voluntarily and may transfer to active at any time upon request," the bar's Web site states.
"Defendant Brown was required to have been an uninterrupted, active member of the State Bar of California since approximately June 6, 2001, for him to have been eligible to take office as the California Attorney General," the lawsuit states.
Brown's lawyer, Robin Johansen of San Leandro, noted Thursday that plaintiff Tom Del Beccaro currently is campaigning to be elected vice chair of the California Republican Party. This is a political lawsuit, she said, and "has no legal merit."
Besides Del Beccaro, who chairs the Contra Costa County Republican Central Committee, the lawsuit's other plaintiffs are Yolo County GOP Chair Mark Pruner; Los Gatos attorney David Prince; Sacramento County GOP committeeman Carl Burton; and Adam Abrahms, chairman of the California Republican Lawyers Association's Los Angeles County chapter.
Del Beccaro said Thursday that once all the parties have been served with the new complaint, they'll coordinate a hearing date within 30 days; he acknowledged the hearing might not occur before Brown's inauguration in early January, but believes the judge still will have the power to boot Brown from office after he's sworn in.
Brown defeated termed-out state Sen. Chuck Poochigian, R-Fresno, who got 38 percent of the vote.
JERRY BROWN PING
Oops, I've been watching too much of the Lame Stream Press...
Bttt
what about RINOld?
can we sue him too? LOL
You mean, for impersonating a Republican? ;-)
CA: Pelosi, Democrats Flock to Chair Arnold Inaugural (Schwarzenegger)
Los Angeles Times ^ | Dec 15, 2006 | Robert Salladay
I wonder if Michael (Weiner) Savage will want his contributions returned if Brown is booted. LOL!
McClintock should beg Arnold to appoint him if Brown can't serve.
Would Arnold do the appointing on that one?
Your unwarranted venom toward Tom knows no bounds! Shame on you!!!
Tom isn't a lawyer... not eligible.
Hey I thought he was a lawyer, but that wasn't meant as a smear.
"Show me just what Mohammed brought that was new, and there you will find things only evil and inhuman, such as his command to spread by the sword the faith he preached." -Manuel II Paleologus
The "begging" BS WAS absolutely an intentional smear and you cannot deny it. You've smeared Tom unmercifully before and you'll keep it up till somebody insists that you stop it... so I insist!!! (please?)(thank you!)
Jerry Brown was, is, and will always be, a hopeless loser. I wouldn't trust him to handle anything more complicated than assigning desks to the AG staff.
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