SCV REJECTS SHOW-CAUSE PETITION IN HOWELL

(Posted September 15, 2016) Several sources are reporting today that the justices have refused the show-cause petition filed in Howell v. McAuliffe, on which I reported recently. Here’s the text of the court’s short order:

Upon a Petition for Writs of Mandamus and Prohibition

      On September 1, 2016, Petitioners filed a “Motion for an Order Requiring Respondents to Show Cause Why They Should Not Be Held in Contempt for Violating the Writ of Mandamus” in this Court. Upon the Motion, the response of the Respondents, and the Reply in Support of Petitioners’ Motion for an Order to Show Cause, Petitioners’ request that they be permitted discovery is denied. Further, the Petitioners’ Motion for an Order to Show Cause against the Respondents is denied.

If you’re looking for an explanation for the ruling, you’ll go hungry. I’ve seen the Governor’s response to the show-cause motion, and it raises several grounds – some substantive, some procedural – for rejection of the motion. We’ll never know why the justices said no, but we at least have a final answer in this litigation.