First hearing held on court challenge to controversial House Bill 1020, set to become law

The first public court appearances took place Wednesday in a challenge to House Bill 1020, the controversial Jackson courts and police bill which is set to become law July 1, with Hinds County Chancery Court Judge Dewayne Thomas calling it the most important case he's considered in a legal career that has stretched more than 40 years.

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Prior to being elected to the chancery court in 2006, Thomas was an attorney. He also served as a member of the legislature from 1984 to 1992.

"I'm treating this like it's the most important case I've ever had to decide as a lawyer or as a judge. And it is important to know that. It's important to the plaintiffs to know that and to the state. In the 17 years I've been here, I consider this, and I've always taken everything seriously, but this is probably the most serious case I've ever had," Thomas said. "Please rest assured that I have gone through all of the material that you have submitted, prior to yesterday, at least 10 to 15 times, and I have read every case you've submitted that I thought was pertinent, every statute that's important, plus our 1890 Constitution, I've gotten more familiar with it now than I ever have."

Thomas, who later said a formal opinion on the constitutionality of HB 1020 would likely not come until sometime between Friday and Monday, said any decision he makes is going to leave one side unhappy, invoking the Biblical story of the Judgement of Solomon.

"I know that I cannot please everybody here today, and I cannot be as smart as Solomon and split the baby, because this baby cannot be split. It just can't," Thomas said.

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Thomas also acknowledged that he is unlikely to have the final say on a case that could be appealed to the state supreme court.

The lawsuit challenging the bill was brought by three Jackson residents who testified from the witness stand Wednesday, each explaining their view that the creation of an unelected court system within the Capitol Complex Improvement District, along with the appointment of temporary judges, infringes on their rights to elect judges.

Cliff Johnson, director of the MacArthur Justice Center, was the primary attorney arguing the case for those three plaintiffs. Johnson asked Thomas to issue a preliminary injunction, preventing the bill from becoming law until the legal challenges have been exhausted. Thomas already issued a restraining order last week putting a halt to the bill until a hearing, like the one Wednesday, could be held on the possible merits of the challenge.

One of the necessary factors in granting injunctive relief is convincing a judge that there is a reasonable chance of ultimately succeeding in your case. Johnson said he thinks the plaintiffs and their legal team clearly have such a chance.

"We have demonstrated a likelihood of success on the merits, a substantial likelihood of success on the merits," Johnson said.

Johnson cited the state's constitution, which stipulates that judges "shall be elected," other than in what Johnson called "very limited circumstances." Those can include a judge unable to or disqualified from presiding. In those cases, a temporary judge may be appointed by the governor.

"That's it, Judge Thomas. That's the appointment power that the Mississippi Constitution provides," Johnson said.

Johnson further argued that the temporary judges added to the Hinds County Circuit Court by HB 1020 would serve for 42 months, compared to the 48-month term of a regular elected judge. In Johnson's view, this makes it difficult to view them as truly temporary.

In response to statements made by the state in its court filings, prepared by the attorney general's office, that Jackson faces a number of local crises, including high levels of crime, Johnson said that cannot be a reason to violate the state constitution.

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"The notion that somehow, the fact that, Jackson, according to the attorney general, is troubled, that that justifies a deprivation of rights, that the people of Jackson haven't handled their business properly so we're going to come in here and help them, and we're going to appoint judges who will be able to straighten them out, is offensive," Johnson said. "It's demeaning. I think it's an insult to elected judges in Hinds County who are working plenty hard to deal with their caseloads."

Lawyers from the state countered Johnson's arguments, including Rex Shannon, special assistant attorney general and deputy director of the office's civil litigation division. Shannon argued that Johnson's request for an injunction should be denied "for two overarching reasons."

First, Shannon said it is the state's view that the chancery court lacks subject matter jurisdiction. Second, Shannon said the plaintiffs do not meet any of the four requirements needed for an injunction to be granted.

Though Johnson argued that the plaintiffs have standing because they pay taxes in Hinds County, vote in the county and could possibly appear before a court in the future, Shannon argued that the plaintiffs lack standing because they cannot show that allowing the bill to become law would cause them harm.

"Stading is not the only jurisdictional problem with this case," Shannon said, adding that it could lead to the overturn of a law already on the books that allows for appointed judges in the event of an "overcrowded docket."

"The plaintiffs are also asking this court to issue an injunction terminating all of the temporary judges who were previously appointed," Shannon said.

Shannon said the HB 1020 and the existing law do not violate the state constitution, so the plaintiffs do not have a likelihood of success.

Finally, Shannon said Jackson needs the additional judges that Johnson and the plaintiffs are challenging.

"That may be the elephant in the room. We've got a crime problem in this city, period," Shannon said. "That crime effects everybody, regardless of race."

Countering what Johnson had argued earlier, Shannon said the city's multiple recent crises are relevant to the discussion and intent of HB 1020.

"Your honor, we know that the citizens of Jackson and the people who work here have had to endure undeniable crises in local leadership in recent years. We set out a litany of those issues in our response. The most pertinent here today is certainly the widespread increase in crime that has plagued Jackson and Hinds County in recent years," Shannon said. "The laws these plaintiffs are challenging are part and parcel of that broader legislative effort to address this ongoing public safety crises with the objective of creating a safer capital city for all Jacksonians and all Mississippians."

Shannon said delaying or preventing the enaction of HB 1020 would only hurt the situation in the city.

"The very real harm in enjoining these laws would far exceed any purported harm to the plaintiffs in this case," Shannon said. "The state submits, without question, any preliminary injunction would disserve the public interest."

HB 1020 was one of the most discussed, and argued over, bills of the 2023 legislative session. Those who wrote the bill, like Rep. Trey Lamar, R-Senatobia, and Sen. Brice Wiggins, R-Pascagoula, said it was intended to address judicial backlogs and high levels of violent crime in the capital city. Opponents, like Jackson Mayor Chokwe Antar Lumumba and many of the lawmakers who represent the city, criticized it as a majority-white legislature imposing undemocratic legislation on a majority-Black city.

This article originally appeared on Mississippi Clarion Ledger: Legal challenges to HB 1020 Jackson MS courts bill reach first hearing