By Brandon Moseley
Alabama Political Reporter
Tuesday, April 19, 2017, suspended Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court Roy Moore (R) had intended to chastise the Special Supreme Court for not deciding his case; but 45 minutes before the scheduled press conference in the old Alabama Supreme Court room in Alabama’s 1859 Capitol complex, the Court released its’ ruling upholding the Chief Justice’s suspension by the Court of the Judiciary (COJ).
Chief Justice Moore said, “This case was a politically motivated effort by the Judicial Inquiry Commission and certain homosexual and transgender groups to remove me from office because of my steadfast opposition to same-sex marriage.” “Their efforts failed and although suspended, today I am still Chief Justice of the Alabama Supreme Court.”
Moore would not announce if he was going to run for US Senate or seek some other such as Governor or Attorney General in 2018. The Chief Justice said, “I will make my plans at the beginning of next week. I have to talk to my family, especially my wife, Kayla,” who joined him at the podium.
The Alabama Political Reporter filed a motion seeking to make the deliberations against Moore be opened to the public and Judge Moore has joined in that effort. APR’s Editor in Chief Bill Britt said, “I don’t think the public or the press take seriously the precedent that the Court has set by allowing these proceedings to remain shrouded in secrecy.”
Chief Justice Moore said, “Contrary to what many of you may think, I consider the press or the media as the bulwark of the people. The people have a right to know what is going on.
Moore said in his statement, “I have done my duty under the laws of this State to stand for the undeniable truth that God ordained marriage as the union of one man and one woman. Mere human judges have no authority to say otherwise.”
Moore said that he found the timing of the 66-page ruling, 45 minutes before his press conference to be “very curions.”
Roy Moore received the longest suspension ever received by any judge in the state of Alabama. By contrast a judge who took pictures of his genitals and emailed them to a litigant in his court room was suspended for just six months and is today back on the court deciding cases in Alabama.
Moore said that the sentence he was given the Court of the Judiciary is, “Illegal and a clear disregard of the will of the voters who elected me to this position.”
When a reporter asked Moore if he was going to appeal Wednesday’s ruling, the Chief Justice if he would appeal this ruling, Moore said, “No, this was the last appeal.”
Moore concluded his statement, “Today’s decision will hurt me financially or compel my retirement to provide for my family. But God is faithful and the ultimate judge. He will direct my path.”
If Chief Justice Moore determines that running for US Senate is part of that path, he may find that he is joining a crowded field. US Senator Luther Strange (R) has announced that he will run for the office that former Governor Robert Bentley (R) appointed him to. Bentley and Strange critic, State Representative Ed Henry (R-Hartselle) announced his candidacy on Tuesday. State Senator Trip Pittman (R-Montrose) is expected to join that field. Several other prominent Republicans including: former State Representative Perry O Hooper Jr., Senate President Del Marsh (R-Anniston), and businessman and Auburn Trustee Jimmy Raine have either announced they are considering it or are rumored to be.
Moore who gained fame as the “Ten Commandments Judge” in Etowah County was twice elected to the Alabama Supreme Court as Chief Justice and the elected head of the court system. Both times his enemies in the Southern Poverty Law Center have convinced the JIC to bring charges against him over his Christian beliefs. The first time the Court of the Judiciary removed him. Last year the majority of the members of the COJ suspended him from serving the remainder of his term.
Roy Moore can not run for another judicial office because Alabama law does not allow for Judges to run for a term after their 70th birthday. Moore turned 70 in February.
