Breaking...

*Anu Joshi DQ'd by J-Council, CalSERVE Escapes*

*CalSERVE Acquitted in SJP Case, 7-2 Majority.*

*Misha Acquitted in J-Council 3-3 Split Decision, Student Action Presidential Candidate Dodges Disqualification Bullet*

*DAAP Disqualified*

SJP Decision Analysis:
The Decision in the SJP Case surprised me; I thought that if the justices were going to rule in favor of the defendants they would at least do so in some logically coherent way. Instead they produced a decision that makes no sense.

From the SJP Majority Decision

However, this opinion should not be construed as to say that SJP, as an ASUC sponsored student group, can operate outside the authority of the ASUC Constitution or Bylaws.

Ok so far so Good. But One Sentence Later:

While ASUC sponsored student groups are always under the authority of the rules and regulations of the Association, the authority granted to ASUC sponsored student groups may be used periodically, but only in accordance with the Constitution and Bylaws.

Thankfully Chair Davis does the picking apart in his dissent:

We simply don’t know what to make of the majority’s decision…The sponsored groups are always under the authority of the ASUC precisely because they possess the capability of abusing ASUC authority and resources, and must therefore be constantly regulated. If they were indeed capable of slipping in and out of their sponsorship requirements at their choosing and convenience, they would not always have to be under ASUC authority.

Basically the Council says that sponsored student groups cannot operate outside ASUC authority…then they say that same authority can be used periodically. What if in periodic use, they violate and thus operate outside the ASUC Constitution or By-Laws, but wait they were in their periodic not-use of authority as this decision allows, but wait they cant operate outside the ASUC Constitution or By-Laws according to this decision…

Thankfully the council does not try to define in what ways periodic use of authority is allowed. So if an ASUC sponsored group decides not use ASUC authority at any time at any point they can go and do whatever they want, like campaign for candidates seeking ASUC offices and give them group resources, it is ok because the group or maybe God can decide in that instance the group was in its periodic period of not using ASUC resources.

Reactions:
Yvette Reacts: "The decision is completely ludicrous and represents an absurd trampling of democracy. We are filing a petition for a rehearing and an appeal, concurrently with a lawsuit in Federal Court for an injunction against the disqualification. This decision will not stand."

Leybovich Decision.doc
DAAP Decision.doc
SJP Decision.doc
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