KY- Ignoring the court (KY Supreme Court)

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10-31-2009 Kentucky:

Just because you can do something doesn't mean you should. Attorney General Jack Conway needs to remember the wisdom of that old admonition as he and his counsel advise the Corrections Department not to follow a recent state Supreme Court ruling as Mr. Conway appeals it.

On Oct. 1, the state's high court, in a 5-2 decision, said the law banning sex offenders from living close to schools, day care centers and playgrounds could not apply to those convicted before 2006, the year the law was enacted. (Earlier this year, the Indiana Supreme Court issued the same ruling for its state law.) Mr. Conway was not happy with the decision, which he said raised "serious concerns about the impact on public safety." He indicated that he might appeal the ruling to the U.S. Supreme Court.

On Oct. 21, Mr. Conway's office filed a motion asking the state Supreme Court to suspend its ruling. The convicted sex offender who successfully challenged the state law has until Nov. 3 to oppose the Attorney General's motion to suspend the higher court's ruling, and Mr. Conway has until Dec. 30 to ask the U.S. Supreme Court to hear his case. In the meantime, the state Supreme Court hasn't issued an opinion as to the stay, and Mr. Conway has asked Kentucky probation and parole officers to continue to enforce the contested law - in essence, disregarding the high court's finding.

"Our position is that the Supreme Court decision is not final," Lisa Lamb, spokeswoman for the state Department of Corrections, told the Lexington Herald-Leader . "We believe the former law is still in effect."

That may be what they believe - and they provide copies of rules of procedure to back up their position, per the department's legal counsel. But the attorney general and his operatives ought not to be in the business of ignoring Supreme Court rulings they don't agree with, no matter how public-minded their intentions. ..Editorial.. by Louisville Courier Journal