Folks in Kansas know, when it rains, it pours. And Kris Kobach, the state's Secretary of State, was just doused with a loss in federal court over the state's voter ID law, as well as some rather embarrassing court ordered sanctions against him personally.
And if you're thinking it's a repeat of his prior embarrassing actions in the same case, perhaps not surprisingly, you'd be wrong. But if you've been following the case, then you know, this was just the logical ends, given there was a contempt order issued over non-compliance with the court's order.
Extra CLE Sanctions
The court really hit Kobach with the book by requiring him to complete 6 additional CLE hours as part of the sanction order. The credits must be in Kansas state or federal rules of evidence or procedure.
If you're just interested in reading about the sanctions, skip ahead to page 110 of the 118 page opinion. The court highlights and describes Kobach's "well-documented history of avoiding" the court's orders, warranting the sanctions, in a succinct few pages.
Voter ID Law Struck Down
Regardless, or perhaps as a result, of Kobach's failings, the court struck down the state voter ID law requiring individuals to show proof of citizenship to register to vote. It found that Kobach had not provided adequate proof that the added burden on voters was justified, given that there have only been a few examples, and scant proof of intentional voter fraud.
Kobach has stated that he will appeal the ruling, calling it extreme, and expressing confidence that he will win on appeal.
Related Resources:
- United States Tenth Circuit Cases (FindLaw's Cases & Codes)
- Social Workers Get Immunity in Child Abuse Case (FindLaw's U.S. Tenth Circuit Blog)
- Court Upholds Utah's Signature-Gathering Law (FindLaw's U.S. Tenth Circuit Blog)
