ICYMI: Rep. Lightner Takes on the Activist Supreme Court

Lansing, MI – Over the weekend, The Detroit News published an op-ed from state Representative Sarah Lightner, who writes about the Michigan Supreme Court overstepping its constitutional role:

“[...] lawmakers write the laws, and judges interpret them. When courts abandon that role and begin creating policy from the bench, the balance of power is distorted and public trust erodes. Unfortunately, that is exactly what we are seeing from the Michigan Supreme Court.”

Rep. Lightner goes on to cite examples of this judicial overreach, including the Michigan Supreme Court’s invention of a new legal class (“emerging adults”), which removed mandatory life without parole for 19 and 20-year-old murderers, and hearing a case that would prevent federal law enforcement from doing its job:

“[...] this rule would prevent federal immigration authorities from making arrests in Michigan courthouses, even when dealing with individuals who are in the country illegally and have committed serious or violent crimes.”

You can read the entire piece here.

“The Democrat-led Michigan Supreme Court is trying to accomplish from the bench what Governor Gretchen Whitmer and her allies in Lansing haven’t been able to achieve through the legislative process,” said Gabe Butzke, a spokesperson for Michigan Forward Network. “It’s not the court’s job to make law, and it’s certainly not the court’s job to do Lansing Democrats’ bidding.”