Chief Justice Roy Moore Requests COJ to Dismiss Charges

Montgomery, AL - Today, Liberty Counsel has filed a motion asking the Court of the Judiciary (COJ) to dismiss charges brought by the Judicial Inquiry Commission (JIC) against Alabama Chief Justice Roy Moore. Today was the deadline of the 14-day extension granted by the COJ for filing a response to the JIC Complaint. Liberty Counsel and Judicial Action Group represent Chief Justice Moore.

On June 29, 2015, three days after the U.S. Supreme Court Obergefell opinion, the Alabama Supreme Court "invited the parties in the Alabama Policy Institute to address the effect of the Supreme Court's decision on this Court's existing orders in this case." When six months passed with no ruling from the Alabama Supreme Court and when the probate judges were conflicted between that ruling and the 2015 orders from the Alabama Supreme Court, Chief Justice Moore issued the January 2016 Administrative Order, in which he stated: "I am not at liberty to provide any guidance to Alabama probate judges on the effect of Obergefell on the existing orders of the Alabama Supreme Court. That issue remains before the entire Court which continues to deliberate on the matter." In March, the Alabama Supreme Court issued the certificate of judgment regarding its 2015 orders. The JIC's charges focus solely on Justice Moore's Administrative Order issued in January 2016. "The Administrative Order of Chief Justice Moore expressly said he could not provide guidance to the probate judges because the matter was pending before the Alabama Supreme Court. The JIC apparently wanted the Chief Justice to openly disobey the Alabama Supreme Court and to take matters into his own hands. The JIC's position is astounding and clearly wrong. It is no wonder why the JIC has no jurisdiction to render legal decisions. When it veers into this forbidden realm, it makes no sense," said Mat Staver, Founder and Chairman of Liberty Counsel. "The Judicial Inquiry Commission lacked jurisdiction to issue the charges because they all deal with a legal interpretation that is beyond its authority. We have asked that these baseless charges be dismissed," said Staver.