You may remember me writing about Judge Kevin Fine in Now For Another Cosmic Moment. He is the ex-drug-abusing, heavily-tattooed Houston jurist who will decide if the death penalty is Constitutional, at least in the case of Texas v. John Edward Green. He was scheduled to hear arguments from the attorneys beginning on 27 April 2010.
That date has clearly come and gone, and yet no cosmic event. I place the blame for that clearly on Texas. Patricia Lykos, District Attorney of Harris County (Houston and environs), asked Judge Fine to recuse himself since (among other charges) he was presuming the defendant to be innocent. Judge Fine declined, Lykos appealed to a higher court, and Rick Perry prayed to a higher being.
The recusal challenge was heard by State District Judge L.J. Gist. Judge Gist who may or may not be hiding tattoos under his black robe, and he may or may not be concealing a checkered past. Whatever the case, he ruled that Judge Fine need not be recused. “It is the finding of this court that the totality of evidence does not support the state's motion to recuse Judge Fine nor that his impartiality might be reasonably questioned."
That means the cosmic moment will be rescheduled. Not only that, Judge Gist agrees with me that the delay is the fault of Texas: "the totality of the evidence does not support the state's motion."
Keep checking in here for the new date.