Hope for Justice in America

A piece of historical trivia, and two headlines from out of the courtrooms have caught my eye today and restored, by just a little bit, some hope that America remains a place where reason can prevail and the Constitution matters.

The trivia, from Today in History in the Washington Post Express; On this day in 1776, “Virginia’s colonial legislature becomes the first to adopt a Bill of Rights.” This somehow strikes a chord with me when reading about these other headlines.

The court cases:

In which President George Bush is told by a Federal Appeals Court in Richmond that the Constitution does not allow the President to simply declare a civilian an ‘enemy combatant’ and then detain them indefinitely without criminal process.

Thank you court, for reminding the President he’s not King George.

Judges Rule Against U.S. On Detained ‘Combatant’
The Washington Post, 6/12/07

In which a man, who as a teenager performed oral sex on a consenting partner and was convicted of a felony for which he has already served two years of a ten year sentence, had his conviction overturned by Superior Court judge who ruled the punishment as unconstitutionally cruel and unusual.

Thank you judge, for pointing out the absurdity of this sentence and knocking it down.

Last minute appeal in teen sex case sparks outrage
CNN, 6/12/07

You can count on the fact that in each case, the President, and Georgia’s sex police, will fight back against these rulings. Who knows, they may win. But for now at least, reason, and the Constitution, have prevailed.