Insurrection In California
Article IV, Section 1 of the California Constitution says "The legislative power of this State is vested in the California Legislature which consists of the Senate and Assembly, but the people reserve to themselves the powers of initiative and referendum."
Article V, Section 1 of the California Constitution says "The supreme executive power of this State is vested in the Governor. The Governor shall see that the law is faithfully executed."
Article IV, Section 1 of the California Constitution says "The judicial power of this State is vested in the Supreme Court, courts of appeal, and superior courts, all of which are courts of record."
Nothing could be more clear. California's judiciary is a free and independent branch of government. The Governor and Legislature have no authority to tell the judiciary what it can or cannot do. They have no authority to tell the judiciary what evidence it can or cannot admit at trial. If they think a judge misbehaves, they can impeach the judge and remove her from the judiciary. Otherwise, it's hands off.
A truly free and independent judiciary defines its own evidence rules (i.e., its own rules for deciding what evidence is or is not admissible). But in California, that's not the case. In California, the Governor and Legislature enacted legislation known as the Evidence Code. The Evidence Code limits the ability of the judiciary to decide what evidence is or is not admissible during a trial. That may sound benign, but it's not.
On Friday September 30, 2022, an insurrection took place in California.
On September 30, 2022, California's Governor signed into law a Bill passed by the Legislature. Assembly Bill No. 2799 limits the authority of the judiciary to decide what rap music lyrics and other "creative expressions" are or are not admissible during a trial. The Bill was signed into law and added to Section 352.2 of the Evidence Code.
The issue faced by a nation of laws is not whether jurors should be prevented from hearing rap music lyrics and other "creative expressions" during a trial. The issue is not whether people who produce and profit from rap music and other "creative expressions" are a special class of people, with special rights and freedoms under the law. The issue is something much more important.
The issue is whether Californians are entitled to a judiciary that is free and independent from whichever politicians happened to find a way to win the last election ... with or without enormous financial backing from people who produce and profit from rap music and other "creative expressions".