More Parker Stuff
Washington, D.C., residents who oppose the city’s strict handgun control law urged the Supreme Court on Wednesday to move along, without delay, the city government’s appeal of a federal appeals court striking down that law under the Second Amendment. Invoking the half-century old admonitions of the late Justice Felix Frankfurter, the local citizens told the Court that it should not be difficult for city lawyers to promptly prepare their petition for review.
The challengers to the local law told the Court that they”look forward” to supporting Supreme Court review of the case, but argued that the city’s appeal papers should be filed, as now scheduled, “no later than Aug. 6.”
The city on Monday asked Chief Justice John G. Roberts, Jr., for a 30-day extension of the time to file the city’s petition in the case of District of Columbia, et al., v. Heller, et al. (extension application 07A51). The city argued that it had taken on additional attorneys who needed to become familiar with the issues, and that city officials had only recently decide actually to appeal the case.
Stalling already?
David Hardy notes Parker is off and rolling:
DC’s motion is quite weak. Basically (1) they took two months to decide whether to file, which now leaves them about a month to go, and it’s complex, so give us another month and (2) we’ve taken on some outside attorneys and they need to get up to speed.
Plaintiffs’ response hits hard. A petition for cert. hardly takes the research of a brief on the merits (here it almost writes itself: conflict between 5th and DC Circuits and the other CIrcuits, on a major constitutional issue. Respectfully submitted, (insert your name)).
