By Legal Heretics
An argument can be made that the overwhelming majority of all problems Americans face lay squarely at the feet of the legal community because every aspect of your life, to some degree or another, is directly impacted by the law.
It is a criminal offense for anyone other than a lawyer to practice law. Talk about job security. If you must resolve a conflict with someone you are likely going to court where a judge, who generally speaking is a lawyer, presides over the proceedings and you are bound by his will. And, in the ultimate case of conflict of interest, lawyers are permitted to be members of legislatures where they can pass laws that you are required to abide by. So, lawyers can write the laws creating the environment that leads to your misfortune, a lawyer is generally necessary to address the problem, and a lawyer plays a significant role in resolving the issue and determining your fate.
Let’s look at a theoretical example. A law is passed because a mythical virus is portrayed as a deadly pandemic based on misrepresentations by authority figures, fraud by academics, and propaganda from the mainstream media. This law would force you to shut your business, control your freedom of movement, mandate experimental medical procedures, and refusing to comply would be a criminal offense. This law is void on its face because at minimum it violates the First Amendment, “[any] law repugnant to the Constitution is void,” 1 and to the best of my knowledge Marbury v. Madison has not been overturned. Beyond violating your First Amendment rights it would have also violated your right to informed consent.2 Therefore, that law was not only void but any attempt to enforce it would have been a criminal act because anyone, under the color of law, who deprives or attempts to deprive someone of a right, privilege, or immunity protected by the Constitution or a law of the United States faces imprisonment and or a fine.3
The reality is if you found yourself in conflict with this law you would be facing the full weight of the government, an adversary with limitless resources. Even if you had the means to mount a defense you may not even be able to find a lawyer to take up your cause for a host of reasons. And this is just one hypothetical example. You might be a criminal defendant because you were exercising your First Amendment rights, or you might be the target of a prolific cyber stalker running what amounts to a criminal enterprise under the guise of social justice advocacy on social media platforms. Irrespective of the issue, the only way to resolve it is through the legal process, which means you are left at the whims of the legal community.
I was a moderate cynic when I entered law school but by the time I graduated, passed the Bar, and joined the real world I was full blown jaded. However, every now and then someone renews my faith in the system like Bobbie Anne Cox did on September 13, 2023. Chances are you probably missed the fact that she metaphorically bitch-slapped Governor Hochul concerning New York’s unconstitutional, totalitarian quarantine law. Not once, but twice. You can see the oral argument for the Governor’s appeal to Cox’s initial victory here, but you probably need to be a law nerd like me to sit through it. Oh, and did I forget to mention she worked on this case pro bono for a year. For those that don’t speak Latin, pro bono means for free. Bobbie Anne epitomizes what a lawyer is supposed to be, but from what I’ve experienced she is more of an exception not the rule.
If more lawyers were like Bobbie Anne I would probably be more sympathetic to the legal community. Unfortunately, they are not. No, I see most of them through the eyes of Rudy Baylor and I guess this is my attempt to keep from becoming “just another shark in the dirty water.”
But for a last minute text message from a friend this inaugural article would have been the filleting of a hypocrite who assumed some degree of moral high ground in his chastising of Raymond Shaw. Today, for an ever-brief moment in time, Bobbie Anne was able to chip away at the jade of a devout cynic who has all but lost all faith in the system. I guess hypocrisy and political corruption can wait for another day. Today we will simply celebrate that there are still good people out there fighting the good fight. Hopefully you are one of them, using the unique gifts God bestowed upon you to make a positive difference in the world today.
The Legal Heretic
- Marbury v. Madison, 5 U.S. 137, 179 (1803).
- 38 U.S.C. § 3771
- See 18 U.S.C. §§ 241 and 242.
DISCLAIMER: The information contained in this article is for educational, informational, and entertainment purposes only. It should not be construed as legal advice, an offer to perform legal services, or having created an attorney-client relationship. Any legal matter a reader may possess should be directed to a professional licensed to practice law in the jurisdiction where the reader resides or where the legal issue transpired.
