Mostly law professors | Sometimes contrarian | Often libertarian | Always independent
I continue to dig through the record of Todd Butler, the new nominee to the Fifth Circuit.
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I → continue → Circuit
I wonder if anyone else did?
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anyone → wonder → ?
Butler's greatest claim to fame is arguing Olivier v. City of Brandon before the Supreme Court.
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claim → argue → Court
The questions presented were fairly technical:
1.
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questions → present → ?
Whether, as the Fifth Circuit holds in conflict with the Ninth and Tenth Circuits, this Court's decision in Heck v. Humphrey bars § 1983 claims seeking purely prospective relief where the plaintiff has been punished before under the law challenged as unconstitutional.
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plaintiff → hold → law
Whether, as the Fifth Circuit and at least four others hold in conflict with five other circuits, Heck v. Humphrey bars § 1983 claims by plaintiffs even where they never had access to federal habeas relief.
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they → hold → relief
The actual facts were not important to the question presented.
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facts → present → question
Yet Butler's briefs took gratuitous shots at Gabe Olivier, a street preacher who was arrested by the City of Brandon.
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who → take → Brandon
Butler's brief in opposition to certiorari compared street preaching to "domestic terrorism."
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brief → compare → terrorism
Petitioner presents himself as "a Christian" who wishes to peacefully "share[] his faith on public streets[.]" Pet.6.
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who → present → Pet.6
He likewise did so in the district court, claiming he does not hurl insults and speaks only in a conversational tone to people walking by.
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he → do → people
Video evidence proves otherwise.
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evidence → prove → ?
On multiple occasions, Petitioner has yelled insults at event attendees, including "whore," "Jezebel," "fornicator," "drunkards," and "sissy."
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Petitioner → yell → whore
The conduct caused disturbances that would have resulted in violence had law enforcement not intervened.
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enforcement → cause → violence
Group protests are his normal course of action, with individuals in his group having been found guilty of simple assault for harassing citizens and one court even describing their actions as "domestic terrorism." ROA.398-424.
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court → find → terrorism
The group has targeted, followed, hurled insults at, spit on, harassed individuals, and, at one point, "began closing in" on a couple.
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group → target → couple
This passage is beyond insulting.
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passage → insult → insulting
He put "Christian" in scare quotes, as if to doubt Olivier's faith.
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He → put → faith
But Butler felt compelled to attack the plaintiff.
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Butler → compel → plaintiff
Olivier's reply brief, filed by Allyson Ho at Gibson Dunn and First Liberty, fired back:
The city begins (at 7-8) by disparaging Olivier's evangelism and states that while he "presents himself as 'a Christian'" the "evidence proves otherwise."
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evidence → file → Christian
But "no official, high or petty, can prescribe what shall be orthodox in * * * religion."
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what → prescribe → religion
, Olivier "identifies sins he believes are relevant for the community at large" to share the good news that Jesus Christ saves people from their sins.
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Christ → identify → sins
The government cannot define who is religious and who is not.
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who → define → ?
If you believe in the Gospel, you have an obligation to tell others your views.
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you → believe → views
What does Butler think preaching do?
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preaching → think → What
One might have thought after the cert grant, Butler would step back from this cliff.
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Butler → think → cliff
After all, he needs votes from Justices Alito and Thomas.
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he → need → Alito
But he does not.
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he → do → ?
The Respondent brief again questions whether Olivier was evangelizing, and repeats the"domestic terrorism" claim:
After it opened, Petitioner traveled to the Amphitheater with a group to, in his words, evangelize. J.A.5.
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Petitioner → question → words
The group's evangelism included using a loudspeaker to call patrons "whores," "Jezebels," "grody," "nasty," "sissies," and other derogatory names.1
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evangelism → include → patrons
They held large signs, some of which depicted aborted fetuses.
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some → hold → fetuses
.App.29a.
FN1: Courts have equated the group's more aggressive conduct, including spitting on people, to "domestic terrorism."
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Courts → equate → terrorism
The Petitioner's reply brief shot back sharply:
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brief → shoot → ?
The city disparages Olivier's evangelism with inaccurate, unsupported accusations, even equating his peaceful expression with "domestic terrorism."
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city → disparage → terrorism
Olivier vigorously disputes this characterization.
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Olivier → dispute → characterization
The prosecution cited by the city involved the conduct of other people in a different location.
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prosecution → cite → location
That prosecution doesn't allege that Olivier participated in the purportedly "aggressive conduct," and there's no support for the city's baseless implication that Olivier "spit[ ] on people."
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Olivier → allege → people
Many of President Trump's nominees have done favorable things for religious liberty.
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Many → do → liberty
But here, Butler actively attacks a Christian, questions his evangelism, and compares him to a domestic terrorist.
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Butler → attack → terrorist
Senator Hawley ripped Attorney General Garland about this scandal.
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Hawley → rip → scandal
The Aporia
