Ky Supreme Court rules in favor of AG Cameron

The Ky Supreme Court ruled on Saturday, Aug. 21, that the Franklin Circuit Court was wrong to block the bills that the Ky Legislature had passed to limit Gov. Beshear’s powers. The Courier-Journal noted, “The unanimous ruling is mostly a victory for the Republican-dominated Kentucky General Assembly and Attorney General Daniel Cameron, who argued the legislation passed earlier this year to limit the governor's power was constitutional and should not have been blocked.”

This means that AG Cameron will have more latitude in pursuing the allowances of HB2 should future mandates be issued. SB1 states that the Governor’s executive orders are limited to 30 days unless extended by the General Assembly. More.

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In Kentucky, new laws do not take effect for 90 days following the Regular Session of the Legislature, unless marked as An Emergency. SB 9, the “Born Alive” bill, took effect immediately. HB 155, the “Newborn Safety Device” bill, became law on June 29th AND the first baby box was installed at Okolona Fire Station #1 located at 8501 Preston Highway in Louisville on July 1st!

HB 91—Yes for Life— has a longer shelf life. It will be on the ballot in 2022, and Kentuckians will vote whether to amend the Ky Constitution with this text: “To protect human life, nothing in this Constitution shall be construed to secure or protect a right to abortion or require the funding of abortion.” As Sponsor Joe Fischer has said, “There will be no Roe v. Wade decision in Ky. The regulation or elimination of abortion will be vested in the Ky General Assembly, not in the courts.”

HB 2, An Emergency, passed into law already, allowing the Attorney General to seek injunctive relief and civil and criminal penalties to prevent, penalize and remedy violation(s) of

• a statute relating to abortion facilities
• certain statutes relating to abortions, and
• emergency management orders relating to elective medical procedures stating that during a state of emergency abortion is deemed to be an emergent or urgent medical procedure.

However, Senate Bills 1 and 2 that limit the Governor’s powers in managing emergencies, were served injunctions by Gov. Beshear right after they passed and now are under litigation in the Ky Supreme Court (along with House Bill 1 and House Joint Resolution 77, also relating to emergency executive orders).

SB 1 and 2 affect HB 2. That is why abortion continued to be viewed as an emergency procedure even after these bills passed both House and Senate, and even though their vetoes were overridden.

The Supreme Court ruling should be issued soon. We expect the Ky Legislature’s amendments to be upheld and will report on this case in a future e-letter. We commend Chad Meredith for a masterful job of arguing this case on behalf of AG Cameron.

As important as the Law IS, when we consider that we are still looking for a response from EMW and Planned Parenthood in regard to the Transfer Agreements LAW that was UPHELD by the Appeals Court LAST NOVEMBER, and a ruling on the 2019 Heartbeat and No-discrimination LAWS from the District Court ever since spring 2020, we realize the great importance of working to change hearts.

Laws can save lives, but the heart is where the action is.

Recently the Beshear administration called for release of Gov. Bevin’s pardon files. These would include records relating to both pardons and commutations by Gov. Bevin that are under Solicitor General Chad Meredith’s oversight.

KRLA has been very impressed with Attorney Meredith’s abilities. He represented Kentuckians in numerous legal cases brought against the pro-life laws passed by our General Assembly during the Bevin administration.

The Courier-Journal reported on July 23 that Holly Johnson, Beshear Finance and Administration Cabinet Secretary, asked the Fayette Circuit Court to order Meredith to turn over public records which he had declined to do in response to an open records request in May and a subpoena in June. Though he provided some records related to the investigation into alleged mismanagement of government funds, he did not release documents related to pardons by asserting that ‘attorney-client and work-product privileges’ prevented him from doing so.

We are sure that Attorney Meredith knows the difference between emails that are state property and emails and documents that comprise confidential case information.

The C-J article reports:

The Finance Cabinet's motion states that Meredith's justification for withholding the records is incorrect, as the emails and attachments related to Bevin’s pardons were part of his official jobs duties and created on state time with state resources.

“In short, they are the property and legal documents of the Commonwealth,” the motion states. “Mr. Meredith’s [sic] does not hold the privilege as to these records, cannot assert the privilege on behalf of the Office of Governor, nor could he do so against the very entity which seeks the production of these documents.”

Read more.

This seems like an ‘appeal to force’ (‘ad baculum’ logical fallacy for you students of the law), as it claims that the state has full rights to any communications, without respect to the legal principle and practice of client-attorney privilege, which is a norm undergirding the entire legal system.

For our pro-life lawsuits, It would mean that any individual, for example, one damaged by an abortion, could not expect her full conversation with a State attorney to be kept confidential, and only portions shared as deemed necessary in a trial. Obviously, a potential breach of confidence could lead to life-damaging public disclosures. What witness would ever volunteer to fully disclose evidences, if attorney-client privilege were not enforced?

To say that attorney-client privilege is nonexistent for state attorneys on state business, and that all state employees’ documents and emails are the property of the state is a disastrous idea, no matter which department, employee or state officer entertains the notion. The debate about ‘open records’ is an active one at this time, but that topic aside, the issue here is attorney-client privilege. That pillar, if removed, could bring the house down.

The same C-J article notes that Atty. Meredith is being considered for a nomination to a federal judgeship in Kentucky’s western district and has the support of Sen. McConnell.

Chad Meredith skillfully defended Kentucky in ACLU / EMW / Planned Parenthood lawsuits brought against the state both in the Fifth District Court and the Sixth Circuit Appeals Court.

The Fifth District Judges who heard the cases for the Ultrasound Law, the Transfer Agreement Law, the Dismemberment Abortion Law, and the Heartbeat and Anti-Eugenics Laws— Judges Hale, McKinley and Stivers— all ruled in favor of the abortion clinics.

The Heartbeat and Anti-Eugenics case hinges on an Appeals Court ruling.