On March 29th, voters will decide on four constitutional amendments. Dr. Stephen Procopio from PAR has already discussed Amendment #2, which involves significant changes to budget and tax allowances. He joins the show to focus on the other three amendments.
Amendment 1: This amendment addresses judicial matters. It proposes adding to the Constitution the Supreme Court’s authority to discipline out-of-state attorneys, a power it believes it already has. This change stems from lawsuits filed after Hurricanes Laura and Delta by a Houston law firm. Additionally, it allows the state legislature to create specialty courts larger than a judicial district or parish, such as business courts, which could enhance competitiveness by handling specialized legal issues.
Amendment 3: This amendment concerns juvenile crime. Currently, the Constitution lists 16 offenses for which juveniles can be tried as adults. The amendment proposes removing this list from the Constitution, allowing the legislature to set it by law. Proponents argue this flexibility is needed to address high crime rates, while opponents worry it could lead to more juveniles being tried as adults, potentially increasing recidivism.
Amendment 4: This technical amendment deals with special elections for judicial vacancies. The legislature recently added closed primaries for Supreme Court districts, but the Constitution requires vacancies to be filled within 12 months. This amendment would allow more time to fill vacancies, resolving conflicts between the new primary system and the constitutional timeline.
These amendments aim to address various judicial and legislative issues, and voters will need to consider their potential impacts carefully.